Between Black and White
by Wolf General
Summary: A group fiction done by Wolf General, Seeker of the Soul, and Time Mage. Juushin has detected this power of Keiji's and it has caught his interest. That is something that you never want to have happen.
1. A case of Mistaken Identities

Hey all. For those who don't know me, I am Time Mage, and this is a group fic by WolfGeneral, Seeker of the Soul, and myself. This was proposed a few weeks ago, and so we thought we'd give it a try. Each chapter will be by a different author, focusing on a different character, so styles will change each chapter, which should keep this rather interesting. Anyway, read on!

**Walking Another's Path**

**Chapter One- Mistaken Identities**

"_Everybody has a reason to fight. For some, it's a matter of running away from something, and some do it to feel strong. Some fight for survival, and others for fun. Me? I guess that's just one more thing that makes me different from other people. I don't have a reason. At least, I didn't..."_

Kyoto was a relatively pleasant city, full of people and buildings, businesses and workers. People went about their daily lives, enjoying comfort and security. The city was so grand and prosperous that it was home to many prestigious Duel Monsters tournaments. People from all over would often visit the ancient capital city for one competition or another, hosted at the large and start of the art stadium that had been built by Industrial Illusions near the grounds of the old Kyoto Castle.

Such a tournament had just ended, and the participants and spectators were all on their way home, congesting traffic in the parking lot and surrounding roads of the stadium, locking many people in place for hours to come, envious of those who lived in the city and could walk or take public transportation.

Walking in a manner indicating that he was leaving said event was a young man, probably nineteen or twenty, dressed in a shirt the color of the twilight sky with the sleeves rolled to his mid forearm and hanging open over a gray shirt and khaki pants.

Using his left hand to brush a strand of silver hair out of his eyes, the young man's vision was blocked for half a second by his Duel Disk, which was in its standby position. After retracting said hand, he was startled by a figure moving in the opposite direction of him, and was unable to sidestep in time.

Bracing for impact, the young man prepared himself to plow headlong into the other man, which would lead to an argument of right of way, manners, etc, and possibly, if the other man had enough of a temper, a duel. Yet much to the man's surprise he did not collide with the on-comer. It was as if the other man had been able to completely step to the side in a fraction of a second and keep going as if they had never been on a collision coarse.

However, even if this was the case, the man had been unable to get to the side as much as he had hoped, and the two brushed their shoulders against one another with a light tap, but that was all. Muttering a faint "Excuse me," the two walked on their ways.

Unfortunately, when their bodies connected, the two men had, without knowing it, made a third party very happy. Jerking his head around to focus in on the two, a man from over a hundred yards away twisted his lips into a cold smile, a special light in his eyes. Running a hand along the brim of his fedora, he analyzed the two men, and decided on his target.

Keiji Saigo had gone through life in a relatively normal fashion. Having run away from home at an early age he had forced himself to live by wits, luck, strength, and any other resource he found he possessed. Of course, he somehow still found himself attending school. For one reason or another, he couldn't ignore the fact that he had a startling intellect that required continuous exercise, even though his life of self-sufficiency and personal study tended to put him at a higher level than anyone else his age, leading to an early graduation three years previous.

Shortly after leaving home, Keiji had discovered Duel Monsters, a card game of strategy, psychology, spirit, and luck, and had become fully immersed in it. Now, after years of practice, Keiji was using the game as a source of income to help him survive along side his job as a teacher's assistant. They wouldn't let him get anything better until he was older.

Keiji hadn't told anyone about his living situation, fearing someone would find a way to force him back into his parent's home until he was twenty, the legal age of adulthood in Japan. As a result, the school didn't know the job they had given him wasn't sufficient for meeting his needs, hence why he'd turned to Duel Monsters tournaments as a means to get by, and thanks to his continuously high rankings, afford occasional luxuries.

In the tournament just completed at the Kyoto Duel Monsters Coliseum, as was it's official title, Keiji had placed sixth, falling to a skillfully played deck comprised of monsters his opponent had called Dark Scorpions, which had gone on to take second place, while first belong to a deck of monsters Keiji had only heard of and hoped he'd never have to battle known as Death Knights.

Raising a hand to protect his eyes from a sudden gust of wind, Keiji made a quickly right-hand turn toward his apartment. It wasn't a fancy complex, but it more than met his needs of a bed, kitchen, and walls to block wind and a roof to keep out rain. It was near the outskirts of town, another reason it was so cheap; at least, cheap for Japan.

Kyoto was a city that, depending on your point of view, was either fortunate or cursed. The once ancient center of trade and government was today neighbor to a large pocket of communities which played house to a number of demon tribes. Some of the most ancient and powerful demonic dynasties were said to live in Japan, especially in reservations such as the one near Kyoto.

The humans and demons avoided each other at all costs, and for centuries the peace had held. Some people spoke in legends of days long passed when humans and demons would ally themselves with each other to face one impending threat or another, or that they would engage in war with one another. Such events were common in children's bedside stories, as well as literature through the ages, although no evidence existed to promote such theories further than oral tradition.

Keiji himself had never had much of an opinion on the matter. The way he saw it, both humans and demons had every right to live on the earth in a way that didn't lead to war or suffering. He had never seen a demon, nor had he ever ventured into their territory out of fear for his own life and the possible danger he may encounter. He was certain not all demons were as violent or savage as some people made them out to be, but he was also rather certain that it would be of great risk to his own safety if he were to try and make contact. ("No, better to leave them to their own affairs, at least until we can get them to open an embassy with us.")

"Amarai of the Dragon demons, I challenge you to a Darkness Game!" Keiji whirled around, a confused look on his face. Standing in the entrance to the ally was another man, probably around thirty or so, in an old brown trench coat and a Duel Disk on his arm.

"Who's Amarai?" Keiji asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't play dumb with me, demon. I felt that energy spark when you bumped into that other kid. He maintained a normal human energy signature, but you've been glowing ever since then." Keiji simply scratched his head in confusion.

"You must have the wrong guy." was finally all he could offer as an answer. The stranger, in response took upon himself a suddenly dumb look of equal confusion, but quickly regained his resolve and went rigid again, raising his arm and activating his Duel Disk.

"You almost had me convinced, dragon, but I know it's you. You're currently the only demon in the human lands, so you're the only one who could have provided that energy spike."

Sighing and shaking his head, Keiji turned back to his original course, intent on leaving the demon hunter to go looking elsewhere.

"You think you can run from me, dragon? I am Ryoushi Myou, one of the greatest Demon Bounty Hunters in Japan. There's an exceptional bounty on your hide, and I _will_ collect."

"Sorry, but I must be going. And my name isn't Amarai, its Keiji Saigo."

"You may have changed your name, but I know it's you, dragon. Now, how do you want to die? In a Darkness Game, or with a shaft of steel thrust through your heart?" However, Keiji was no longer listening and was nearly out of the ally. "Fine, have it your way." Snapping his fingers, Ryoushi chuckled lightly as a black fog appeared in Keiji's path, to both their sides, and behind the hunter, all growing together into one single form. Much to Keiji's surprise, when he touched the fog, his body ricocheted back a few inches, unable to pass through.

Turning around slowly, Keiji's eyes began to widen. He had heard about these Darkness Games, duels that came about because of demon contact. However, it was common knowledge that only demons could generate this field of magic.

"I have no choice, do I?" Keiji finally spoke, but it was not a question. Extending his arm, his Duel Disk snapped into action, his deck already shuffled and in place. (KLP:4000) Ryoushi did the same. (RLP:4000) They both drew five cards, and then Keiji drew a sixth, planning on taking the first turn.

"I summon Ranger of the Falling Stars (1700/1400) in attack mode." A man in archaic attire, like those one might see on a forest dwelling outlaw appeared, covered by a green cloak, a short sword strapped to his belt. "I'll then set two magic or trap cards face down, and end my turn."

Drawing a card, Ryoushi began to survey his hand. After a few seconds, he made his play. "I play Hold of the Different Dimension, a card that can only be chained to by a negation effect, and if successful will prevent you from activating set magic or trap cards for one turn." Keiji shook his head, signaling that he did not have any method of stopping the activation, and grimacing as his two set cards became coated in a shimmering blue light. "Now I will set one magic or trap card and play my Soul Absorption magic card. Finally, I'll summon a monster in defense mode and end. Now go, dragon."

Drawing a card, Keiji looked at his opponent. Something about the guy just seemed off. He was so confident, even though he thought he was hunting a demon. That meant he was either very foolish, or he had earned this job. However, despite that, he hadn't gone on the attack, meaning he either had a bad opening hand, or he was waiting for something, or for Keiji to attack. There was only one way to find out.

"I summon Ranger of the Moon (1400/1000) in attack mode." Another man appeared, dressed much like the first only in an off-white cloak and with two long knives at his waist. "Now I'll equip him with the magic card, Shooting Star Lance, raising his attack and defense by 400 (1800/1400)!" Instantly a long shaft appeared, clasped in the hands of the bough-cloaked man, a curved blade at the end, looking like a sliver of the moon.

"Impressive as your monster now is, I doubt he can get past my monster." Ryoushi chuckled.

"Let's find out." Keiji responded, raise a hand and pointing at the brown backed card on Ryoushi's field. Raising the weapon, Keiji's monster stealthily, yet silently, and slashed the card in half. However, much to Keiji's surprise, it looked as though his monster had cut-not through a card- but through the air itself, and now there seemed to be a rip in the fabric of the nothingness which is thin air.

Noting Keiji's confusion, Ryoushi began to explain. "The monster you destroyed is Dimension Soldier (1200/800), and when destroyed he is removed from play, but he'll take your monster with him!" With these words, the rip in the fabric of reality began to pull on Keiji's monster, sucking him in before sealing up. "And then my Soul Absorption activates, granting me five hundred Life Points for each card removed from play, such as our two monsters, meaning I gain one thousand life points!" (RLP:5000)

"Normally, yes," Keiji agreed with his opponent, aware of what the magic card did. "However, you didn't take the special abilities of my cards. Both Ranger of the Moon and Shooting Star Lance have the effect that when they are involved in destroying a monster in battle, they instantly deal the opponent five hundred damage, undoing the Life Points you just gained." (RLP:4000)

"Now, since it's still my turn, I'll have Ranger of the Falling Stars attack you directly!" The green and brown garbed forester drew his sword and charged Ryoushi, swinging directly down, the tip of his blade grazing the man, but not actually cutting him. (RLP:2300) "End."

Drawing, Ryoushi made a quick decision on his move and slapped a card onto his monster zone. "I summon Dimension Assailant (1700/1600) in attack mode!" A man with a limber body, dressed in a silver body suit and wielding a large sword appeared. "Dimension Assailant, attack his Ranger of the Falling Stars!" Glancing at his cards, Keiji began to wonder if he should use his monsters special ability, which would allow him to discard one card from his hand to stop the attack, but decided against it, preferring to let Ryoushi clear his own field himself.

Slashing down with his sword, Dimension Assailant was halted by a short sword, the collision of their blades causing sparks to fly. At the point where the swords met appeared another rift like the one created by Ryoushi's previous monster, meaning that this new one would do the same and remove both from play. As the two vanished, Keiji heard Ryoushi's Duel Disk tallying up his new Life Points. (RLP:3300)

"Now, to end my turn, I play Dimension Journey to special summon level four or lower monsters with 'D.D.' or 'Dimension' from my out of play pile to my empty field." the demon slayer explained as his Dimension Assailant appeared alongside another man who looked like a younger version, only with red hair and a shorter sword.

Drawing a third card, Keiji instantly played it. "Pot of Greed to draw two cards." Raising his hand size to four, Keiji looked at his two face down cards, which he knew would be locked down for the remainder of his turn. "I summon Ranger of Nightfall (1800/1500) in attack mode." Dressed in a navy blue cloak and in slightly less ragtag clothing was Keiji's new monster, armed with a single bladed and short-handled axe.

Instantly, Keiji chose another card from his hand. "If your Hold of the Different Dimension may keep me from activating any set cards, but I can still play cards like normal, such as my Evening Star Bow, which will raise Ranger of Nightfall's attack by two hundred (2000)."

Slipping the hatchet into a loop on his waist, the wanderer raised his left arm as a short bow appeared in his hand and a quiver of arrows on his back. "Since attacking your monsters would be rather foolish of me, I'll use the effect of my Evening Star Bow to skip my monsters attack this turn and instead deal you direct damage equal to the total levels of your monsters multiplied by fifty." Knocking an arrow and taking careful aim, the ranger released the string, firing the bolt past Ryoushi's monsters and striking him in the left shoulder, causing the man's entire body to twist and nearly lose balance. (RLP: 2500)

Satisfied, Keiji slid one more card face down and nodded, signaling that Ryoushi could begin his turn. Drawing a third card, Ryoushi used his middle and ring fingers to grab another card from his hand which he slapped down as a monster and then inserting the drawn card into a magic zone. First appeared the monster, a woman with strawberry blonde hair and dressed in a black and silver body suit, a short sword that appeared to be made of some form of electrical energy. Behind her was the image of the magic card, which showed a swirling formation in the air with three silhouettes faintly visible against it.

"This is my D.D. Warrior Lady (1500/1600), and the magic card is Dimension Blitz, allowing me to summon any more copies of the Dimension monster I just summoned from my deck, so here are two more D.D. Warrior Lady's (1500/1600 x2)!" Two more copies of the female warrior appeared, their swords crackling.

"Go face down card!" Keiji called as one of his three set cards flipped up, now free from Ryoushi's magic card. "Hidden Soldiers activates when you summon a monster and allows me to special summon one level four and Dark monster from my hand, so I summon another Ranger of Nightfall (1800/1500) in attack mode." Standing tall next to his brother was another warrior with a blue cloak, but he had no bow and arrow like the first one.

"No matter how many of your monsters you have, I still have more, and I will now clear them from the field, dragon!" Ryoushi shouted back, depressing a button on his Duel Disk, flipping his trap card up. "Spirit Barrier prevents me from taking damage when my monsters battle." he explained, even though Keiji knew what the card did, and so he also knew what Ryoushi was planning.

"Now, Dimension Soldier, as the weakest of my monsters, will attack your first Ranger of Nightfall, removing them both from play, giving me one thousand Life Points while losing nothing thanks to Spirit Barrier." Running up to Keiji's monster, the shortest of the warriors raised his sword and slashed down, but his attack was dodged with a simple sidestep, and so the warrior struck the air, cutting a hole into space and time which both monsters began to be pulled into, their bodies compressing and stretching to fit into the thin hole.

"I activate the other card you locked down at the beginning," Keiji called as a green boarded card flipped up, meaning it was a quick-play. "Star Streak Impact destroys up to two magic or trap cards on your field -Soul Absorption and Spirit Barrier, in this case- when I have a Ranger in play and will then deal you three hundred damage for each of the destroyed cards." From the sky above the field fell two streaks of light at high speeds, each on crashing into one of Ryoushi's two continuous cards, shattering them. (RLP:1900)

"But that means I'll take damage!" Ryoushi moaned as the two monsters completely vanished into the rift and his Life Points fell further. (RLP:1100) "It doesn't matter, tough, since you'll lose in the end! Dimension Assailant, attack his final Ranger of Nightfall!"

Charging with his sword raised, the tallest of Ryoushi's four remaining monsters charged, crashing into Keiji's monster, who swung his axe and caught the warrior in the stomach before they both vanished, dealing Ryoushi minimal damage once again. (RLP:1000)

"I activate my final face down card!" Keiji called, understanding what was coming, and rather against taking forty-five direct damage from Ryoushi's three remaining monsters. "Standing In Moonlight activates when a Ranger leaves the field and raises my Life Points by that monster's base attack." (KLP:5800)

"You're a stubborn one, aren't you dragon? No wonder the bounty for you is so high. Of course, you're almost finished. D.D. Warrior Ladies, attack!" Charging as one the three women raised their swords attacked Keiji, catching him in his shoulders and chest, knocking him back, feeling like he'd just been hit by a swinging tree. With just a single group attack, Keiji's Life Points had been dropped to just barely above that of Ryoushi. (KLP:1300)

"I already told you, I'm not a dragon demon." Keiji coughed, rubbing his sore chest. "And my name is Keiji."

"Stubborn enough to keep on lying, even in times such at these." the hunter smiled and shook his head. "But whether you admit it or not, Amarai Reiki, in the end this Darkness Game will ensure that you come with me and surrender yourself to the one who demands your bounty."

"First off," Keiji growled and drew a third card. "I'm not a dragon demon named Amarai Reiki, so I'm worthless in that regard. Second, I'm not going to lose."

"You're much more disciplined than I had heard about you, Amarai, and you lack that fiery, egotistical and aggressive spirit as it common in dragon demons. Is that why you left your families lands?"

Rolling his eyes at the futility of trying to convince the hunter otherwise, Keiji looked at his drawn card and the two in his hand. "I summon Starlight Ranger (1500/1300) in attack mode and set one card face down. Go." A man in a blue cloak, lighter in shade than Ranger of Nightfall's, appeared, a simple staff in his hand. Behind him appeared a face down card, a potential trap, or possibly just a bluff.

"D.D. Warrior Lady, attack his monster!" Ryoushi ordered one of his three monsters. Without hesitation she ran up to Keiji's monster and stabbed him in the stomach. However, with his final breath, the man raised both arms, staff held horizontal, and then lowered said arms, using them and the staff to trap the warrior lady, causing both of them to fade away. "Now, I'll have another D.D. Warrior Lady attack directly and finish you off!" Ryoushi ordered and one of the remaining two ran up to Keiji, sword raised to spear him through.

"Go face down card, Attack Guidance Armor!" Keiji shouted as demonic armor appeared around the one female soldier who had remained at Ryoushi's side. The eyes on the chest plate of the armor flashed a deep red for a second and then the attacking woman stopped, her eyes glazed over. She then blindly turned around and ran towards her sister, who panicked and raised her own sword, the two sisters being impaled by the weapon of the other.

"Very good move, dragon, but still not good enough." Ryoushi mocked, a smug smile on his face. "I'll set one card face down and end my turn."

Keiji drew a card and grimaced. ("Great, I've got one high level monster and one magic card.") Setting a card face down, he ended his turn.

"Seems that you're running out of moves, Amarai." the demon hunter laughed while drawing a second card, which he slapped onto the field, unleashing a man who was rapped in brown and white robes that were torn and ragged, covering most of his body. "This is the Survivor of the Different Dimension (1800/200), and he'll be the one to finish you off." Running at Keiji, cape flittering, the man raised a fist punched at Keiji.

"I activate Shrink." he countered as his magic card flipped up to reveal the image of a Battle Ox being shrunk down in size. "This card will cut your monsters attack points in half for the turn (900)." As the holographic card image shattered and the effect resolved, Keiji was caught in the chest by the fist of the Survivor of the Different Dimension, sending him crashing to the ground hard. (KLP:400)

Struggling to lift himself up, Keiji smiled at Ryoushi, who had a rather irritated look on his face. He nodded, and Keiji drew to start his turn.

"I play Graceful Charity." Sliding three cards off of his deck, Keiji looked at the four he now held before depositing the monster he had been holding onto for a few turns, plus a magic card. "Now I summon another Ranger of the Moon (1400/1000) in attack mode, and I'll equip him with Battle Crest, raising his attack points by one hundred times his level (1800). That ends my turn."

"And now you lose, dragon." the bounty hunter smiled. "I play Dimension Vortex , removing one monster from each of our fields from play, but we both then special summon one out of play monster back to the field." he explained as both monsters on the field faded away. Instantly his Dimension Assailant (1700/1600) reappeared, but Keiji was surprised when the Survivor of the Different Dimension also reappeared.

"What's this?"

"This, dragon, is the effect of my Survivor. When he is removed from play, he returns to the field."

"Be as that may, by removing my monster from play you've destroyed my Battle Crest, activating its special ability, allowing me to draw until I hold four cards!" Keiji explained, drawing four times. "Also, I return my Ranger of Nightfall (1800/1500) to the field."

"It would seem that we are at an impasse." Ryoushi smiled.

"Not really." Keiji responded. "Knowing you, you'll suicide one of your monsters against mine, more than likely your Assailant, and then attack directly with your Survivor." Ryoushi was, needless to say, dumbstruck by the fact that Keiji had predicted his move. So surprised, in fact, that he missed the sense of fear in Keiji's words.

"You may have figured it out, young dragon, but it doesn't mean you can stop it. Survivor of the Different Dimension, attack!" Lunging forward, fists pulled back, the wanderer prepared his attack. In response, Keiji's monster prepared his hatchet.

"Activate magic card," Keiji called.

"There are none!" Ryoushi countered.

"This is a special one." Keiji explained. "It's known as Sanctity of the Buried, and it activates only from my graveyard, removing five cards from my graveyard from play to activate, and to negate your attack." Keiji explained as a fistful of cards shot into his waiting hand from his graveyard.

"Very well, I end my turn." Ryoushi growled, looking at his two card hand.

"Your mistake." Keiji sighed, much to Ryoushi's confusion. "Sanctity of the Buried only stops one attack. You could have attacked again, and I wouldn't have had enough cards to remove this time."

Shaking with fury, the demon slayer narrowed his eyes, as if trying to cause Keiji's very soul to collapse on itself. "Why you son of a-"

"I activate Ranger of Nightfall's special ability, sacrificing him to special summon two level four or lower Ranger's from my deck to my field in attack mode." Dissolving into dots of light, the navy blue robed warrior vanished and was replaced by two identical men in black clothing with black cloaks, but with streaks of light randomly placed on the capes. "These are my Rangers of the Eclipse (1900/1900 x2)."

Swallowing hard, Ryoushi tried to take in what was happening, until he remembered his face down card. With it, he'd survive while reducing the numbers of the enemy's ranks.

"I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your face-down card." Keiji continued. Ryoushi's jaw dropped as fear began to set in.

"Have you forgotten, dragon, that my Assailant will remove the monster you attack him with from play?" he taunted, hoping his opponent had an attachment with his cards that he could exploit. Much to his joy, when he looked the silver-haired man in the eye, he saw that there was indeed such a connection.

"I haven't forgotten." Keiji admitted. "Which is why I'll have to finish you with the first attack, before he can be removed from play."

"What?"

"Go, equipment magic card, United We Stand!" he shouted, sliding the magic card into his Duel Disk. "This card gives my Ranger of the Eclipse eight hundred extra attack points for every monster on my field, and I have two, meaning he now gains sixteen hundred attack points (3700)!" Pulling out a crossbow from beneath his cloak, Keiji's chosen monster took aim, two arrows on the track of the arbalest instead of the standard one. "Fire!"

With a gentle squeeze of the trigger, the mechanized weapon released the spring, resulting in the string snapping straight and launching the two darts at Ryoushi's monster, sticking into the Assailants chest and dealing two thousand points of damage. (RLP:0)

"But...I am one of the greatest demon hunters-"

"I'm not a demon, and my name is Keiji!" the young man restated yet again. "And now, since this was a Darkness Game, I get to inflict a Punishment Game, correct?" With eyes wide, Ryoushi refused to respond in any way. "As such, I forbid you from ever hunting again."

And with that declaration, the fog began to fade, and Keiji could tell by the positioning of the stars and moon that it was now nearly eleven pm. It was getting late, and he had work in the morning.

Walking up the stairs to his apartment, Keiji did not notice the figure standing over Ryoushi Myou, a disgusted look on his face, and then turning up to look at Keiji's apartment. Cracking a smile, he began to plan.

"Tomorrow's gonna be a long day for you, won't it, Amarai Reiki."

_To Be Continued..._

And there you have it. The first chapter of our joint story. But who is Amarai Reiki, and why are there people after him?

_Hey there folks, it's your friendly neighborhood demon general here to spread good cheer and such. I hope you liked Time Mage's introduction to the world we're holding this fic in, and I hope you enjoy being exposed to a world that is our little brainchild. Anyhow, next chapter up is from me, and it will involve the 'mysterious' Amarai, the dragon demon these hunters are after. Who is he, and why is he a wanted demon? We'll find out next time, now won't we? Check it out in Wandering Dragon!_

Also, the Ranger cards are _mine!_ They were made for this story, and for use by Keiji only. I think he used about three cards that aren't mine, and you should know by now which ones those are. As for the Dimension cards, if it's one you didn't recognize, then it's most likely Wolf General's, Seeker of the Soul's, or mine.

Anyway, that about wraps that up. Next chapter will be brought to you by Wolf General or Seeker, so be on the lookout.


	2. Wandering Dragon

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Walking Another's Path

Chapter 2: Wandering Dragon

_Bracing for impact, the young man prepared himself to plow headlong into the other man, which would lead to an argument of right of way, manners, etc, and possibly, if the other man had enough of a temper, a duel. Yet much to the man's surprise he did not collide with the on-comer. It was as if the other man had been able to completely step to the side in a fraction of a second and keep going as if they had never been on a collision coarse._

_However, even if this was the case, the man had been unable to get to the side as much as he had hoped, and the two brushed their shoulders against one another with a light tap, but that was all. Muttering a faint "Excuse me," the two walked on their ways._

Amarai barely paid the other boy more than that. He had too many things on his mind to worry about a brief encounter with a random guy. ("No, I have to keep moving. I'm still being trailed by those men…") He glanced very carefully over his shoulder and knew instantly that something was wrong with the shadows in a couple of nearby alleyways. They were too large and too distorted. ("Shadow Trackers?") For a fleeting moment he smiled at the possibility that 'he' had sent these men. ("No…his method of dealing with his problems has always been straightforward and to the point. He wouldn't bring out a pair of assassins just for me until it became necessary.")

Maybe he was just putting too much importance on his own life though. Dodging past a couple holding hands and looking up at the sky, Amarai mentally berated himself for using Flash Step again. ("Stop that…people find it strange when you just seem to avoid running into them out of the blue. Stop using Flash Step…stop using Flash Step…")

"Is that the guy?" A dark-cloaked form spoke from behind a nearby parked car, his body blending perfectly with the shadows created by the vehicle's position. "The descriptions of him describe a silver-haired boy with bronze eyes that looks about 20, right?"

Looking at the boy they had been trailing for the last few hours, Cerin clenched his fist in the thought that his triumph was soon approaching. The boy fit all of the descriptors, and the eyes and hair were unique enough as to say that something about this boy wasn't human.

"Indeed…it might be him. We could be making a mistake. And we must, of course, be weary of the possibility that if it is him, he could be dangerous." Another dark-cloaked form, this one standing atop a street lamp, spoke into his small communicator. "As a dragon demon, he is definitely capable of massive amounts of destruction if he wished it. And if he did cause that kind of destruction, then you and I would most likely die."

"You worry too much, Repir." The car-hidden form seemed to fade out of existence. "After all, the worst he could do is reveal himself as the demon he is, and then the authorities would take him down in one shot. No…this one won't be acting very threatening, nothing beyond what you and I can handle with our teamwork."

"Enough, he's turning the corner and going into some kind of gaming store right now." Repir leapt up to the roof of the building and kneeled down so that his cloak concealed him within the sea of black coverings on the roof. "I leave it to you, Cerin. Flush him out."

----------------------------

The store keeper, a young man who couldn't have been any older than twenty-five, smiled as he heard the door to his store open. "Welcome!"

A young man wearing a green t-shirt and a pair of jeans walked in, his shimmering silver hair catching the light from the lighting fixtures and refracting it slightly. "Hi. I was wondering if this gaming store had the latest Shonen Jump in?"

"Shonen…" Smiling, the man pointed over at the comics rack. "Right over there. Be sure to ask if there is anything else you want."

Amarai felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. "Yes, where is your bathroom?"

"Right in the back. It's unlocked and marked, so go right ahead and use it." The store keeper watched as the boy walked out of sight right as he heard the door to his store open. "Welcome!"

The next man to walk in wore a brown sweater and a pair of beige khaki pants, with a short crop of brown hair and a pair of deep blue eyes. "Excuse me, but did a young man with silver hair walk in here about a minute ago?"

"Yes, he just went into the back." The store keeper watched in more than a little interest as the man started to head towards the back of the store. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"He's my son, and at the moment he's in a lot of trouble. I just need to bring him home, that's all." The man held up a hand reassuringly. "This should only take a minute." He started to walk towards the back, and then stopped as he felt someone approaching. ("Planning on facing me in the open? Wise choice…but if you think this store owner will be able to help you by calling the police, you are in for a big surprise.") He had a small loaded handgun in his pocket, and if it came to it he had no qualms with blowing the man's head off.

The person who stepped out of the back rooms of the store though wasn't the one he had been expecting. It was a silver-haired person with bronze-colored eyes wearing a green t-shirt and a pair of jeans, but it was a girl. She was short, and rather cute-looking, if Cerin was into younger women…but something about her didn't radiate that same aura he had sensed from their target. "Oh, excuse me." The girl walked past him casually, without the slightest hesitation.

Cerin narrowed his eyes when he heard the store keeper's sound of confusion. ("A disguise? How foolish!") Spinning, he pulled out his handgun and without wasting any time blew a hole right in the head of the shop keeper.

The girl screamed and stumbled away from the corpse that was now slumped over the counter. She moved back as far as she could towards a wall, eyes wide in terror at Cerin. "What…why…"

This brought the Tracker more than a little doubt. ("Wait a second…if it's a demon it shouldn't be afraid of blood or death that easily…") He growled and aimed the handgun right at the girl. "The games over, Amarai. I know it's you, and I know that there's no way you can hope to escape me. Now surrender quickly or I'll kill you."

The girl had tears staining her cheeks, and she was almost trying to climb the wall she had her back to. "Amarai? No…my name's Amesia…"

"Do I look stupid to you?" Screaming out that last part, Cerin fired his gun right above her head, leaving a bullet hole just a few inches from her skull. "Show your true form to me already. I'm not in the mood to play with you…" He could heard crackling coming from his communicator, and that worried him. It should have been silent unless something on the same frequency as his communicator was locked in the 'on' position. ("What's going on upstairs?")

"Real form…what do you mean?" The girl dropped to her knees and put her hands over her head, quivering in fear. "I'm not Amarai!"

"I've heard just about enough out of…" Cerin froze as he heard a thud from the back of the store. "Who's there?"

"Cerin…" Repir, his cloak stained with blood, stumbled into view. "Amarai…Amarai…"

"He's right here, trying to disguise himself stupidly. And what the hell happened to you anyway?" Cerin barely flinched as his business partner collapsed to the ground, dead. "Cheh, what a fool. Anyway Amarai, you had better face me or else I'll just shoot you and leave it at that."

Amesia tried to crawl away, and felt the wall above her explode as another bullet was pounded into it. Screaming, she curled up into a ball and prayed that she would be okay.

Cerin aimed the gun right at her head. "That's enough playing around. Die, Amarai." Right as started to pull the trigger, a powerful bright spotlight shined in through the store window and nearly blinded both him and Amesia. "Damn, it's the police! They respond faster here…"

"This is the police, come out with your hands up and your gun down." A very stern voice yelled out through a megaphone.

"Cheh, this is far too troublesome for my tastes…fine then, little missy, I'll just use you as a…" Cerin looked back over at where Amesia was, and found himself staring into a pair of intense bronze-colored eyes that were so strong in ferocity he felt himself unable to move. "W…W…"

Amarai slowly stood up and looked around the store quickly, taking in the situation. "You killed the store owner?" His hand snapped out and knocked Cerin's gun away with ease. "That's low…even for how some of you Trackers operate."

"W…Where'd…" Cerin was truly confused now. Was the target just pretending to be a girl and be afraid until his attention was off of him?

Amarai kept his eyes averted from the spotlight shining in the window. "I'm going to kill you, just to make sure that you don't ever do this kind of horrible thing again."

"Kill me?" Cerin snarled and the spotlight was cut off as a surging orb of darkness formed around them. "Fool, I've got you just where I want you!"

"A darkness game?" Amarai tilted his head back and sighed. "Very well…" A bronze and silver duel disk materialized onto his arm, and he pulled a Duel Monsters deck out of his back pocket. "Though if you thought that this kind of thing was meant to trap me, then you are dead wrong. My powers are far beyond whatever yours might be, regardless of your preparations."

"Foolish dragon, you can't argue the fact that I've got you right where I want you. In this game, you cannot injure me at all with your mighty powers, and if I win I can deal with you in any way that I so choose." Cerin removed a Duel Disk from underneath his cloak and strapped it onto his arm. "Prepare yourself for battle!"

Cerin- 4000

Amarai- 4000

Cerin slid the top card off of his deck and the darkness throbbed. "I begin with one card face-down on the field. Then I special summon my Consumer of Magic (1600/1000) to the field without sacrifice." A red and black leech-like monster appeared on the field. "This monster can be summoned without sacrifice by offering one magic card I have on the field as a tribute. I offer my face-down Back to Square One as an offering!" The leech turned and chomped down on the set card, destroying it immediately. "Also, for every magic card in my graveyard my Consumer gains 100 attack points." (1700/1000) "Beyond that I place a single card face-down on my field for an added barrier against your attack. End turn."

Amarai checked his body over once more. ("Good, he didn't hurt me while I was in that state…") Drawing the top card of his deck, he threw it down onto the field. "I special summon my Cyber Dragon (2100/1600) without sacrifice!" A metallic serpent-like dragon appeared on the field and roared in anger. "Go Cyber Dragon, Evolution Burst!" A blast of fire shot out of the dragon's jaws and rocketed towards the leech.

"Reverse card open!" Cerin's face-down card flipped up and lightning slammed into the Cyber Dragon, forcing it to fade away. "Counter Lightning is a trap that triggers when the opponent attacks. If the attacking monster is stronger than the monster being attacked, I can send the attacking monster back to your hand and force you to discard the top six cards of your deck." A line of lightning shot in and hit Amarai's deck, the top six cards of the boy's deck disappearing into his graveyard slot.

Amarai looked down at his returned Cyber Dragon and then at the rest of his hand. ("Well that sucks…but at the same time…") He reached into his graveyard and pulled out the six cards that were there, looking at each one in turn and then returning them to the slot. ("With this setup, I can actually use this combo.") Sliding a card into his disk, he glanced over at Cerin's field and the Consumer of Magic. "Your leech won't last much longer. I set one card face-down on my field and end my turn."

"You have no monsters in play." Cerin drew. "I set one card face-down and special summon another Consumer of Magic without sacrifice." His face-down card disappeared as another of the red and black leeches appeared on his field. (1800/1000x2) "Consumers, attack his life points directly!"

"Wait!" Amarai's face-down card flipped up. "Go Morbid Gameshow!" His face-down card flipped up to reveal a trap with a picture of a bunch of zombies on a gameshow. "This card activates when the opponent declares an attack against me. My opponent must guess what the bottom card of my graveyard is, whether it be monster, magic, or trap. If he guesses right my graveyard is removed from the game, but if he guesses wrong them I may activate and use one card from my graveyard right now."

Cerin knew that he had a one in three chance. "I call…magic!"

Amarai smiled slowly and his graveyard spat out a card. "Actually, it's a Cyber Dragon! The card is added to my hand and can be played at this time. Since I have no monsters in play and you do, I special summon my Cyber Dragon without sacrifice!" There was a flash of light as the metallic serpent-like dragon appeared on the field. "Now what will you do?"

Cerin slid two cards into his disk. "I place two cards face-down on the field and then I end my turn."

Amarai drew. "During my standby phase I activate the effect of the monster you sent to the graveyard through the effect of your Counter Lightning! Cyber Serpent (300/300) when in my graveyard during my standby phase, allows me to remove it from the game to add one Cyber Dragon from my deck to my hand." Fanning out his seven cards, he looked at the two Cyber Dragons he was holding and then at the one on his field.

Cerin felt a couple of drops of sweat on his forehead. This was a risky gamble he was taking, relying on his two face-down cards to keep him safe.

"I activate Polymerization!" Amarai held up the magic card and two more Cyber Dragons appeared on his field. "Fuse the three Cyber Dragons together now!" The three steel monsters were sucked into a swirling vortex, and when that vortex cleared there was a towering and powerful three-headed metal dragon on his field. "Fusion summon Cyber End Dragon!" (4000/2800)

"That's very impressive, but it won't finish me off if you do successfully strike me. I know all about the powerful strategy of the Cyber Dragons, foolish lizard." Cerin started to smile, but when Amarai smiled he stopped. "Is there something that you find amusing?"

"I activate the equipment magic card Spread Shot Attachment!" The middle head of the Cyber End Dragon was replaced by a metal dragon head with numerous gun barrels coming of it. "This card can only be equipped to a monster in play that has both Cyber and Dragon in its title. That monster loses 100 attack points, but gains the ability to attack all monsters on your field with its attack." (3900/2800) "Cyber End Dragon, Spread Evolution Burst!" The middle head of the composite monster was the only one to move as it unleashed two blasts of burning flame.

"Reveal face-down card!" One of Cerin's cards flipped up. "I use the power of my Demon Wall to negate your attack because I have two demon type monsters in play!"

"And I negate it with my Cyber Calculations quickplay magic card." Amarai slid the drawn card into his disk. "This card activates when the opponent attempts to negate an attack of my Cyber monsters…that negation is negated, and the attack continues." The two blasts of energy slammed right into both of the Consumers of Magic, blowing them into nothingness.

Cerin- 800

Amarai- 4000

Amarai lifted his eyesbrows slightly, wondering why his opponent was still standing. Then he figured it out. "Your other face-down card was Emergency Provisions, which allowed you to sacrifice your Demon Wall to gain 1000 life points. Impressive defense…but wouldn't you say that the hunter has now become the hunted?"

"That's your opinion." Cerin was about to draw but he saw Amarai hold up his hand. "What?"

"I am activating my Time Capsule magic card. From my deck, I select one magic, trap, or monster card and remove it from play. In two turns that card will enter my hand, and until then my Time Capsule remains on the field. If you can destroy it until then, that card will remain removed from the game. Also, I place one card face-down. End turn." Amarai seemed infinitely calm, a trait very common amongst the enigmatic dragon demons. They were incredibly calm, and rarely did they lose their tempers.

Clenching his fist angrily, Cerin drew. When he looked at the drawn card though, his eyes widened. "Ha…" Dropping to his knees, he laughed long and hard at how much fate was smiling upon him. "You…you're about to lose!" Slowly, he stood up and held up the drawn card. "Go Nightmare Fusion! This magic card allows me to remove fusion material monsters from my field or graveyard to special summon a demon type fusion monster from my fusion deck to the field!" There was an explosion of fire as a giant leech appeared on the field. "Magic Vortexer (?) is special summoned to the field!"

"It has no attack or defense points yet…so what are the determining…" Amarai gasped as his Cyber End Dragon and Time Capsule began to shake. ("I've heard of this monster…")

"I'm sure you realize that my monster removes all magic cards in play and cards that those cards are equipped to from the game. In other words, your Time Capsule, Spread Fire Attachment, and Cyber End Dragon will leave the game! Then I give my monster the statistics of one monster in either player's removed from play pile!"

"Reveal Cyber Xerox!" Amarai's face-down card flipped up and a large futuristic copier appeared on the field. "I may now copy any card you have played since last turn! Go Emergency Provisions!" His Cyber End Dragon's Spread Fire head disappeared and was replaced by its normal head, and his Time Capsule dissipated into mist. Then he grimaced as his Cyber End Dragon dissolved into slime that was sucked up into the body of the Magic Vortexer.

Cerin- 800

Amarai- 6000

Cerin sneered as his Magic Vortexer let out a bellowing roar as it absorbed the powers and abilities of the Cyber End Dragon. (4000/2800) "You may have saved yourself, but take this! Magical Burst!" A blast of glowing purple energy shot out of the leech's body and slammed right into Amarai's chest, dropping him to one knee from the pain.

Cerin- 800

Amarai- 2000

Amarai slowly stood up, and he checked his chest to make sure he was alright. "Is that all?"

"Act as calm as you want. Don't forget that you have no cards in your hand and no cards on your field. Also, whatever precious card you looked for with Time Capsule is lost forever." Cerin pointed at Amarai. "Take your turn!"

"Gladly." Amarai drew and a card shimmered into his hand. "The card I removed from the game was a magic card called Treasure from the Different Dimension. During my standby phase, if this card is removed from play, it comes back into my hand and both players draw two cards." Sliding two more cards off of his deck, Amarai waited patiently for Cerin to draw his two as well.

When the Tracker did, the dragon demon continued his move. One look at his hand told him all he needed to know. "This duel is over for you. I have a way to summon a monster with enough attack to wipe you out."

"Prove it." Cerin sneered coldly, because he had plans to protect himself with the magic card that was sacrificed to his second Consumer of Magic. It would only work in the graveyard, and that was perfect for his deck.

"Go Power Bond!" Amarai held the card up and smiled. "This card allows me to fuse things together to create a machine type fusion monster."

"You have such cards in your hand?" Cerin sneered right up until he saw Amarai hold up a card. "That's…"

"Cybernetic Fusion Support! This quickplay magic card lets me pay half of my life points to remove my three graveyard Cyber Dragons as the cost for Power Bond's fusion!" There was an explosion of lightning behind him as the giant form of Cyber End Dragon appeared on his field. (4000/2800)

Cerin- 800

Amarai- 1000

Cerin glanced over at his monster. "Considering our monsters are equal…"

"We're not even close to equal! Power Bond doubles the attack of the monster it fused!" (8000/2800) Amarai closed his eyes. "Any last words?"

("Power Bond, at the end phase of the turn it is activated, deals the activating player damage equal to the original attack of the fused monster if it is still in play.") Cerin knew the card in his graveyard would end this duel immediately. It would negate the attack of the Cyber End Dragon, and then at the end phase of the turn his opponent would be destroyed. "No…not a single last word at all."

Amarai opened his field magic card slot. "Then let me play my last card! Go Cyber Civilization!" All around them the darkness twisted and morphed into a huge silver cityscape. "Within this place, all Cyber monsters gain 200 extra attack points!" (8200/2800) "This is the end for you! Go Cyber Evolution Annihilation!" Roaring, his triple-headed titan unleashed three separate jets of fire that tore towards the leech.

"Fool! From my graveyard I remove five cards from my graveyard to activate my Sanctity of the Buried! With this magic card, your attack will be negated and you'll have to lose!" Cerin started to laugh…until the blast tore right through his fusion monster and blew it to pieces. "I…Impossible! How did you…but…"

Cerin- 0

Amarai- 1000

"Cyber Civilization…" Amarai lowered his head slowly. "Prevents my opponent from activating or accessing their graveyard. Also, they cannot activate cards from their hand during my turn." He held up his hand as the field faded away and caught the handgun that Cerin has used. Tossing it across the field to the Tracker, he emotionlessly snapped his fingers. "Pick it up."

Cerin felt his hand reach down and wrap around the weapon's handle without him telling it to do so. ("No…no…")

Amarai tapped the side of his head. "Aim here."

Cerin wanted to scream, but he couldn't move at all. All he could do was feel the cold metal of the weapon's barrel as it pressed against his head. "No…please…"

"Fire." Amarai didn't flinch in the slightest as the Tracker pulled the trigger…but nothing happened except for a nearly silent click. Holding up the weapon's clip, the dragon demon burned his eyes right into the other man's. "You will spend the rest of your life in prison. When the police arrest you, you'll confess to every single crime you have ever done in your entire life, and when they convict you you'll plead guilty. That is your punishment game." Turning away, the dragon demon walked right through falling darkness…and was blinded as he walked right into the burning circle of the spotlight. ("Damn it!")

----------------------------

"It's been thirty minutes…we're going in!" The head policeman pointed at the store's entrance. "Go!"

Right before the first policeman could kick down the door, it opened slowly and a pale-faced man in a brown sweater stumbled out into the moonlight. "I…I surrender! I did it…I…" And then he started to recite a very long list of crimes…

----------------------------

Amesia sat with her back pressed against the wall of the alley. She had woken up to this incredibly painful light circle that was burning her eyes. And out of fear, she had run to the bathroom and snuck out the window as quickly as she could. She didn't know why she kept passing out…and she still had no idea who she really was. ("It's all a blank in my head…") Reaching into her pocket, she took out a small bundle of money with a money clip holding it together. ("I…I guess I should at least go find something to eat. There must be a restaurant near here…")

_To be continued…_

Next Time, from the mind of Seeker of the Soul…

_Demons and humans do not coexist, they cannot coexist. They live in separate civilizations, practically separate worlds. But for some that separation isn't enough. For some, demons are lower than the low, the scum you scrape off the bottom of your shoe. One such person has set his eyes upon Amarai, and such attention can prove deadly…_


	3. Beneath the Boot

Author's Note: This is Seeker of the Soul, presenting a peek at my part of the story. Enjoy.

**Chapter Three: Beneath the Boot**

The sound of his pounding heart in his ears was absolutely deafening. Even the crunching of the underbrush beneath his bare feet was nothing compared to that sound. His superb hearing made his heart beat sound ever louder.

Leaves rustled off to his left, causing him to freeze, holding himself completely still. Slowly his eyes trailed off in that direction and he took a sample of the air, testing it for that familiar scent. _'Shit, they've gotten closer!'_

He began to think through his options, his brain racing a mile a minute as he assessed the situation. There were four men, armed with assault weapons and in body armor, just about fifteen feet to his left.

Somewhere in the general area were about five or six more groups of the same size elsewhere in the jungle, all of them looking for the same target. Him. _'I can take out one of the groups easily if I strike fast, but that'll point me out to the rest, and all of these bastards are using armor piercing rounds, that shit can punch through my body with no resistance!'_

Once again he tested the air, checking for signs of any of the other groups being within the area. If he was cautious he could pick the groups off one by one, it was his only option. So, with that in mind, he began sliding along the ground at a slow and quiet pace, moving on the position of the armed men.

He paused, finally catching sight of his targets through the brush. They were wearing jungle camouflage fatigues, but it was definitely not standard for the Argentinean military, but they were Argentinean in appearance. _'The few I heard speaking were also talking in Portuguese, so they are native. But who are these freaks, a para-military group?'_

It wasn't unusual for there to be para-military groups in Argentina, especially wandering around the jungles. This was different though, because it wasn't like they were rebels hiding out or just using the jungle as a staging point. This wasn't a raiding party, it was a hunting party. _'And I'm the prey. What an ironic twist of fate.'_

Had he wandered onto them while they were performing some secret activities he could understand their desire and determination to end his life. However, all he had been doing was searching for a meal in the jungle, when all of a sudden he came under fire from these freaks. _'And I've been running from them for three hours now. I've taken out six…but there are still so many left!'_

His small pupils shrank down to an even smaller size as he noticed one of the men looking in his direction. Slowly the soldier hefted his assault rifle, what looked to be an M-40 Assault Rifle. He cursed mentally at the sight of what lay under the barrel. _'Shit! That's a damned grenade launcher! Where the hell did these guys get high end U.S. military weapons?'_

The soldier made a quick motion with one hand, snapping two fingers in the same direction that he was facing. The other three began to move forwards, taking cautious steps with the practiced ease of genuine military men. _'Like I thought, they aren't amateurs. Not rebels…this is a trained military group. What the hell are they doing out here then? Are they Argentinean Special Forces or something?'_

When the men had made it within ten feet of him he knew it was his one and only chance to act. If they moved any closer before he sprung they would see him and open fire before he could charge. _'It's now or never. I'll cut these pigs down right now!'_

The soldiers jerked their weapons inwards as a shape blurred out of the brush, moving at great velocity and with serpentine grace. The powerful form landed on top of the first soldier, driving him bodily to the ground. The squad leader didn't even get a chance to scream as sharp claws tore out his throat.

In less than three seconds the squad's size had dropped from four to three, and the creature wasn't done yet. His scales, which seemed to change depending on what was nearby, glinted in the sun as he jumped from the corpse to the next soldier, high powered rounds whizzing by his shoulders.

"Die mammal!" The creature's right hand, claws extended, plunged directly into the soldier's face, putting a hole in his head and making him completely unrecognizable. The monster hissed as a bullet punched into its shoulder, but it was off again at top speed, slamming into the next soldier without mercy.

Both hands gripped the third soldier's stomach, claws tearing through the body armor and into the fighter's guts. With a roar the monster pulled them out, then grabbed his enemy and whirled him around, hurling him at the fourth soldier. Bullets sprayed through the body at him, and only a swift jump to the side let him avoid death. _'Shit! Armor piercing, just like I thought!'_

Immediately he sprang into action again, zipping through the brush towards the soldier, who seemed to be moving in slow motion compared to him. The soldier would never get his weapon around in time to stop the charge. _'Last one! I'll rip his heart out with my bare hands!'_

He sprung forwards, crossing ten feet in one leapt, his claws outstretched towards the soldier's chest. His fingers were splayed out, claws at the ready to rip the man's chest open. Then, without warning, two loud bangs filled the air, and the monster felt two somethings impact with his body.

The kinetic energy of his leap combined with whatever had struck him managed to spin his body around, causing him to land in a heap next to the soldier. The Argentinean man snapped his gun towards his foe's head, ready to fire the killing blow. _'I'm going to die at the hands of a measly mammal!'_

"Hold!" The soldier immediately snapped to attention, shouldering his weapon. He brought his left hand to the center of his chest in a vague form of salute. Once again the monster found this odd, as that was not the salute of the Argentinean military.

"Sir! We apologize for our carelessness!" The monster felt his body quiver as he tried to stand, to capitalize on the soldier's attention to whoever else was there. Finally he brought his attention down to his body, and discovered a large messy hole where his stomach might have been. It didn't look like many of his organs had taken the hits well.

His vision fuzzed for a moment as he fought to control himself, focused his energy at his gut, trying to heal the wounds, though he knew them to be fatal already. Had there been medical attention nearby, or perhaps at least a clean environment and time, he might have survived but…not this time. _'Those rounds were heavier than armor piercing…what the hell did he hit me with?'_

Approaching from the trees off to the right side was a man in the same fatigues as the other soldiers, only he had command stripes on his shoulders, and some sort of lenses covering his eyes. _'Infrared vision goggles maybe?'_

Covered as the approaching commander's face was by camoflauge paint, the fallen creature could barely tell what his killer looked like. All he knew is that the gun in the man's right hand looked very high tech, and he had never seen anything like it. The man's gaze met the creature's, and followed it. "Curious about the weapon that killed you demon?"

The commander hefted the weapon, gripping it in both hands and displaying it in a side view. The lizard demon looked it over, noticing that it looked like an assembled weapon, one that group break down into multiple parts, and it had two separate clips, one in front of the grip and the other behind. It also had two barrels. "Yeah…sure."

"This is the XM-29 OICW, an advanced small arms assault weapon designed over the past nearly twenty years. It still hasn't been incorporated into any military yet, but it was designed for the United States military. It's the best infantry weapon known to man, and can fire kinetic bullets, High Explosive rounds, and if I were having fun, target practice rounds. But for you, I used a special bullet I used a Burst Round, a special bullet that detonates inside the target, shredding organs. It means instant death most times for a human, but you'll probably suffer for hours. Only fitting really." The man sneered, walking up so he stood directly over the demon's fallen body.

The commander raised his goggled eyes up to the still statue-like soldier. "Dismissed soldier. I'll deal with this demon scum myself. In addition, this one's eggs shoulder be somewhere within the vicinity. I'm sure if you and the others search you can find its children and slaughter them before they become a threat to society." The lizard demons eyes went wide, and his tongue flared out, rage burning through his body.

"Sir yes sir!" The soldier snapped another salute and then jogged off into the forest, leaving the demon alone with the man who had killed him. The man lowered his goggled gaze to the demon, and that sneer returned at the sight of the angry expression.

"You hate me for what I have done, don't you demon? I've killed you, painfully I might add, and I have already ordered my men to slaughter your children, and most likely your mate since she'll be guarding the nest. After all, you were hunting for food to bring to your mate since she cannot hunt for herself, isn't that right?" When the demon only hissed in response the man continued, smiling in an almost friendly manner.

"Yes, that's what I thought. Perhaps you are asking yourself: 'Why me? What did I do to deserve this? Why my innocent unborn children?' Well, is that right?" The demon lashed out with a clawed handing, hoping to rip the man's thigh open and drop him to the ground where he could be finished.

To his surprise the commander reacted with great speed, jerked the XM-29 around and firing a round into the arm. The lizard demon scream in pain as the Burst Round exploded in his forearm, blowing it off just above the elbow. "I can't have that can I. Hmm…the other one is also dangerous, isn't it?"

Without another word the demon's killer aimed the assault weapon and blew off the other arm, then both of his feet, and finally severed his tail about mid-way up. Smirking he shouldered the weapon. "Demon scum, you're nothing but a pre-evolved beast, not even worthy of a Cro-Magnon's respect. You and the rest of your foul kind are a ban on this world, and that is why I ordered your death. As a matter of fact, you and your mate are the only demons left in this entire jungle. We've killed the others."

"Mammal…you may have killed me, but in the end it will be a demon that does you in. You humans are below us, not worthy of our notice! You are the sub-sentients of this planet, and for actions such as this the demon community will be in outrage, and come forth into human lands to slaughter you all once and for all!" His eyes burned with rage, his body functioning in its last few minutes.

His killer paused for a moment, his mouth set in a slight frown. Then it tilted up into a furious snarl, his teeth bared as he stomped his booted foot down on the demon's face, pressing it against the ground. "Demon scum, this is where you and the rest of your kind belong! Beneath my boot, as nothing but a thing we must wipe off on our way into our houses! Demon, I'll give you a final parting gift of knowledge. Your wife and the rest of the demons on this planet…soon they'll all be dead!"

He fired a kinetic round into the demon's skull, splattering the brain. The lizard demon was dead in an instant, its blood leaking out onto the commander's booted foot. He lifted his foot off calmly and scraped the blood off against the underbrush. "And now, I wash my hands of you."

Turning the human stalked away, ready to join his soldiers in their hunt for the dead lizard demon's mate and nest.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As the man marched up to the outside of a hidden cave, another group of soldiers snapped to attention, having been waiting for him. He turned to the nearest one, a squad leader with a Sergeant's stripes on his uniform. "Status report."

The soldier saluted once, then dropped into an at ease position. "General, we've contained the lizard demon's mate within the cave, however because the cave acts as a choke point we have been unable to penetrate far into the cave without suffering causalities. Our poison smoke canisters have failed to drive the demon out of hiding. In addition, there is a second demon in hiding with it."

The General nodded once, then turned and looked into the tunnel, the lens goggles over his eyes giving him an almost bug-like appearance from the Sergeant's point of view. "Understandable. I'll deal with this personally."

"But sir, there are two demons in there!" His commander's head turned towards him, and the sergeant stiffened, feeling the power of that glare even through the goggles. Finally the General turned away and walked without a care in the world into the demon's nest.

Carrying his XM-29 in one hand, the General strolled through the cave like he owned the place. As he rounded a corner a blurred figure dropped down at him from the ceiling, only to find itself suspended in mid-air. The lizard demon snarled, and discovered that its body was wrapped up by vines. "A sneak attack of course. Disgraceful, but to be expected from sub-sentient scum like you demons."

"Bastard! You slew my mate, and everyone else in the jungle! You'll pay for your crimes in blood!" The female lizard demon cursed as the vines tightened, pressing her had against the ceiling. Yet still the human didn't look up at her.

"Yes, I killed him, I'm sure you can smell his blood on me, something I'll be have to shower and scrub at for hours to get rid of I'm sure. In this situation, I could kill you easily. Those vines that hold you fast, that's not bad luck on your part. That is my power." The lizard demon's eyes widened, her body struggling against the vines.

_'A human who can command plants? What in the world is this man?'_ Before she could say another word a powerful roar ripped through the cave, and another lizard demon came barreling down through the tunnel, jumping from wall to wall at high speed.

Instead of firing rapid bursts at the oncoming freight train of a demon like the other soldiers had, this one simply stood stock still and hefted his rifle. With cold precision he fired a single round while the lizard demon was in the middle of a jump. _'He can't possibly expect that to hit at that speed!'_

To her absolute horror, the other demon's head, her brother's head, exploded. It was ripped apart by the power of the explosive round the soldier below her had fired, leaving a headless corpse to collapse against the wall. "He charged head on; at least he displayed some courage. That's more than I can say for you or your mate. Now, how far down in the tunnel is your nest? I'd prefer not to walk too far to kill your unborn children."

"Mammalian bastard! You've killed my mate, you've killed my brother, but I will not allow you to kill my hatchlings! I challenge you to a Darkness Games!" She saw the man pause as darkness filled the cave around them, looking as if he was in thought.

He walked about a dozen feet away, then snapped his fingers, releasing her from the vines. He turned to face her, letting her see the camouflaged face of the man who had killed her family. "Mammal, I, Tisia Morei, last surviving member of the Morei Lizard Demon Clan…will destroy you in this game!" (TLP: 4000)

The soldier set his gun to the side, and then raised his left arm up in front of him. To the lizard demon's surprise vines wrapped themselves around his arm, shaping into a crude duel disk, which he promptly inserted a deck into. "Go ahead and take the first turn demon scum. I don't need any advantages to beat a nothing like you."

She snarled, her tongue flaring out as she pulled a scaled duel disk from the niche in the wall and attached it to her arm. She had been prepared for just such an occasion. "Aren't you going to tell me your name mammal? Won't you grant me the name of the man who slaughtered my family?"

"No. I will never grant my name to any worthless demon; even my own troops don't know my name. They call me General, or, if you'd prefer, you may call me one of my titles. Call me Juushin if you call me anything at all." He drew five cards calmly, and she drew six in response. (JLP: 4000)

Tisia flicked through her cards, and then with two clawed fingers she placed a card onto her field. "Gigobyte(350/300) in attack mode!" A tiny little reptilian creature with green skin now stood in front of her, not even coming up to her knee.

"Adorable, but useless. Anything else?" The female demon nodded and held up one of her other cards, and immediately Gigobyte began to glow brightly. It began to grow, becoming larger and larger until it was even bigger than she was, with powerful rippling muscles and sharp teeth.

"My magic card Reptilian Evolution lets me sacrifice a reptile monster on my field to special summon a higher level reptile from my hand to the field. I have chosen Gogiga Gagagigo(2950/2800)!" Her monster roared powerfully, but Juushin didn't appear bothered at all.

"Finally I set one card face down. Go ahead and take your turn mammal!" Without a word Juushin drew, and then inspected his hand carefully.

"I start simply, by summoning Killer Thorn(1600/1000) in attack mode. When this monster is normal summoned I can draw one card." He replaced the summoned monster with a new drawn card before his creature even appeared.

When Juushin's monster appeared, it was revealed as a monster with a body made up almost entirely of sharp looking thorns. Even Gogiga Gagagigo probably wouldn't enjoy trying to eat that. "I equip my monster with Poison Spore. Any monster that destroys this one is also destroyed."

"Yet still you leave your weak monster in attack mode. That is foolishness, even if you intend to destroy my mighty monster! You mammals are too hot blooded to think strategy through, especially human mammals." Juushin seemed to be still for just a moment, and then his lips titled up in a fierce snarl.

"Demon scum, don't you dare speak to me as if you were even close to being my equal, let alone my superior! Go magic card, Cross Pollination! This transforms your reptile into something more suitable, in other words, it becomes a plant!" Tisia hissed as vines burst out of her reptile's skin, making it look like it was made of wood.

He raised his right arm, pointing directly at Gogiga Gagagigo, and Killer Thorn began to fire thorns at a rapid pace. "Killer Thorn, attack her monster! Destroy each other!"

"Gogiga, counter attack! Crush Killer Thorn!" Despite the thorns that were pounding into its body the mighty former reptile ran forwards and slammed a large fist into the plant monster's body, ripping it apart. (JLP: 2650)

He snapped his fingers, and Gogiga exploded, wood flying all around them. "Remember, Poison Spore destroys your monster. And now, the second effect of Cross Pollination. When the monster changed goes to the grave, I gain its attack as life points!"

Tisia hissed again as energy flowed from the fallen pieces of her monster into Juushin's crude duel disk. _'He planned a way to destroy my powerful monster and undo any damage to himself…he's not as hot headed as I might have thought.'_ (JLP: 5600)

Her human opponent sneered and slid one of his three remaining cards into his duel disk. "Go ahead and take your turn demon scum. It won't affect this duel. It has been determined because of one simple fact. You are a demon, so I will win!"

She drew, looking fierce and deadly as she viewed her new card. "No mammal like you can defeat the cold blooded fury of a lizard demon! Activate magic card, Serpent's Bite! I now discard the top five cards of my deck…"

One by one she slipped them off the top, looking at each as she did so. "For every reptile amongst them you take five hundred damage. And I've discarded three!" She held them up, and then slammed them into her graveyard.

As soon as that action had been completed a giant snake burst out of her magic card and shot across the field, clamping down on her human opponent's body, draining him of life points. His knees quivered slightly, but he remained standing and didn't even react other than that. "Is that all demon?" (JLP: 4100)

Shaking her head she took another card from her hand and threw it down. "Thunder Lizard(1600/1500) in attack mode! Once per turn this monster lets me deal you three hundred points of damage. Thunder Breath!"

A large green dinosaur-like lizard emerged, and fired a burst of lightning from its mouth, striking Juushin head on. He stood stock still, letting it cover him, but was otherwise unharmed. "Is that the best you can do demon?" (JLP: 3800)

"Shut up mammal! Reverse card open, Embodiment of Apophis! This trap card now becomes the monster known as an Embodiment of Apophis(1600/1800)!" A serpentine figure in armor, holding a sword now stood next to her lizard.

"Embodiment of Apophis, Thunder Lizard, attack the mammal directly!" Juushin just stood there as lightning poured over his body and the Embodiment's sword slammed into his shoulder. Tisia hissed, irritated that he still didn't seem to be hurt. No human was supposed to be that strong! (JLP: 400)

"Is that all, or can I go now and get this duel done with?" Tisia shot him a deadly glare, and then placed one of her two remaining cards into her duel disk. Then with a dismissive wave she ended her turn.

Juushin drew, and then was blasted by Thunder Lizard. Tisia chuckled as his life points dropped. "Like I said, Thunder Lizard drains you of three hundred life points _each_ turn, meaning on my turn you lose!" (JLP: 100)

"I summon Palmetto Girl(1100/2000). When this monster is normal summoned, I get to draw three cards while you draw one. Now draw your card." Tisia drew once, giving her two cards, while Juushi drew three times, restoring his hand size to five.

Immediately he held up one of his new cards, depicting a water can drizzling onto a potted plant. "I play Fertilizer! This magic card lets me choose one of two effects, and the effect I'm choosing is just like evolution card's effect. I sacrifice Palmetto Girl…" The plant girl faded away.

"Then I summon Grapebind(2300/0) from my hand to the field!" Tisia, despite being a fearsome demon, found herself backing away from the monstrosity that had just been summoned. Juushin's newest monster was a large tree, with branches that were tortured human-like faces.

A glance at her face down card reassured herself that she was safe from this terrifying beast. "Grapebind, destroy Thunder Lizard!" The tree's vines launched towards Thunder Lizard, and in an instant the second card flipped up.

Before she could even declare what her trap card was, the face down card on Juushin's field revealed itself. "Petal Blast is a counter trap that will negate your card's activation!" Her card exploded.

"Battle continues!" The vines wrapped around the middle of her Thunder Lizard, and then brutally ripped it in half. She bit down on her lip as blood pooled on the ground from the broken body. (TLP: 3300)

"When Grapebind destroys a monster you must discard the top card of your deck. If it is a monster I may draw a card." Tisia held up the drawn card, showing that it was a Gagagigo. Juushing drew a card in response.

He held up the drawn card, along with another card from his hand. "Attack Fertilizer lets me sacrifice a plant type monster to let another plant attack again this turn. However, I play Substitute which offers itself for the effect. Grapebind attacks again!"

Again she grimaced as Grapebind tore apart Embodiment of Apophis, clearing her field. When she discarded her next card, she saw with frustration that it was her second most powerful monster, and she had just lost it. "Excellent, another draw." (TLP: 2600)

"I'm not dead yet mammal! So don't count me as finished!" She hissed, her tongue stretching out as she reached for her next card to start her turn off.

Juushin punched a fist into the wall of the cave, bringing her attention back to him. She stepped back, feeling raw waves of power rolling off of him, stronger than any she had ever sensed from a human being. "Insolent demon scum! This is your end, you die right now!"

He slammed his drawn card into his plant duel disk with such force that Tisia was surprised it didn't break. "Quick-play magic card activates! Late Bloomer activates when a plant destroys a non-plant monster. I now special summon a plant monster from my hand and let it attack!"

Another huge plant formed this one with a giant slavering maw and vines that stretched from the side, almost like tentacles. It was so huge that it barely fit in the cave, its body stretching out roots deep into the ground. "Flesh-Eating Plant(3500/2300), devour that demon scum alive!"

Tisia screamed, slashing at the vines that whipped out to wrap around her body. But her claws didn't even manage to scratch the monster plant as it dragged her body towards that open fleshy mouth. "Yes, scream demon! Scream in the last moments of your life as my pet eats you for sustenance! And know in your last moments that I will personally destroy each and every one of your eggs!"

She screamed once more as she was shoved into the plant's mouth, its sharp teeth ripping into her flesh. Blood splattered against the ground as it churned her body, finally consuming it completely. When it was done it lowered its head, and Juushin stroked the top of its massive head. "Excellent work my pet. Now, I've got more work to do."

A dozen minutes later Juushin walked out of the cave, his fatigues covered in blood and ichor, a frown on his face. The soldiers backed away, all of them having heard the horrifying screams from within. Only the sergeant approached. "Sir, is something wrong?"

Juushin's nose wrinkled and he pulled at his soaked fatigues, looking truly irritated. "Yes, this is sickening. It will take hours to get this disgusting blood and the smell of demon off of me. Oh well, that's the price we pay for making the world a better place. Come! Torch the jungle and let's be done with it."

"Torch the jungle sir? But this is a natural preserve, with thousands of unique species in it." All eyes turned to the low ranking soldier who had spoken up, and then they looked away from him. Without a word Juushin raised his rifle and blew out one of the soldier's kneecaps.

"This entire jungle has been tainted by those demons. Torch it, you will start the first fire personally, or I will aim the next shot between your legs. Are we understood soldier?" Despite being collapsed on the ground, the soldier managed a pained salute.

"Sir yes sir!" Juushin turned away without another word, and began to walk back. Behind him he heard the roar of flames, and knew that they had done their duty. All was well.

Several hours of intense scrubbing and cleaning later Juushin stood in civilian clothes, the strange goggles still covering his eyes. He ran a hand through his still wet black hair which clung to his scalp, and took a relaxed breath.

Just as he was about to head to his bed, a screen behind him flickered on, and a deep male voice spoke from it. "Juushin, our Great Lord has given me a command to relay to you. As his most loyal supporter you are to return to Japan and organize the capture of a royal dragon demon, loose in human lands."

Juushin paused, not bothering to look back since he knew to whom the voice belonged. "A dragon demon of an ancient line, in human lands? An exile no doubt. What is this demon's name?"

"He is called Amarai."

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Author's Note: And there you have it.

After a weekend of tournament dueling, Keiji's back to work at the local high school. Sadly, Ryoushi wasn't the only one to pick up on the "energy spike" that Ryoushi mentioned, and Ryoushi wasn't the only one to think Keiji's a demon. Needless to say, Keiji's gonna have to explain to the principal why he missed first period.  
Next Time: Cards In Hand


	4. Cards in Hand

1Here we go again. Back to me, Time Mage, and Keiji.

**Chapter Four-Cards In Hand**

Upon waking, Keiji went about his normal routine of showering, dressing, shaving, and breakfast. By the time he was ready to leave, the sun had already made a great deal of progress in its own morning routine or rising. When Keiji had awoken it was still dark as night, but by the time he walked out the front door, the sky was blue and the low sun burned at his maladjusted eyes.

Walking down the steps toward the ally where he had encountered Ryoushi the night before, Keiji began to turn that event over and over in his head. He had heard a great deal about Darkness Games, but what he had experienced was quite different. He had heard that the monsters were so real that when they were defeated, it could become rather graphic, and that when they attacked directly, it could sometimes be so dangerous it was fatal. He had heard about mass pressure on the mind and soul, wearing the users down, becoming an endurance challenge just as much as a test of skill.

Yet the challenge from the night before hadn't granted him any of this. Aside from the dark bubble that had surrounded them, and fact that the declaration of his Punishment Game seemed to have had some effect on Ryoushi, Keiji felt that the duel was no different from any other he had faced.

No, no, not exactly. There had been one difference, he realized as he reflected back upon the match. He had felt...Different. He had felt...calm? It had felt natural. Yet, how could it have been natural when he had never even seen a real Darkness Game, yet alone been in one before?

Shaking his head, Keiji tried to clear his head while he entered the ally. He couldn't afford to get distracted at work. He had a job to do, and Darkness Games had nothing to do with it.

Of course, this wouldn't work quite like he had been hoping, because as he entered the ally, he realized that Ryoushi's body had moved. It was nowhere in sight. _'Maybe he came too in the middle of the night? Yes, yes that must be it.'_ Keiji concluded, rising from his knee where he had been checking out the ground near where the duel had been, no clues visible.

"I'll use lunch to check the library for anything I can find on Darkness Games and Dragon Demons." he decided, turning back toward the exit into the mainstream of the city, brushing some of his silver hair out of his eyes.

However, upon reaching the end of the ally, the hairs on the back of his neck began to rise up. Keiji froze, trying to block out all distractions to try and pinpoint whatever it was that had startled him, a skill he had come to rely on during the years he was on his own.

Jumping backward, Keiji wasn't so surprised as he was curious when a steal frame with bars, fit to the width of the ally fell from above and locking into place in Keiji's path like a portcullis. Turning, Keiji noticed a second gate had fallen into place behind him, both about twenty feet high. His nerves maximizing, Keiji began to search about and putting his guard up, expecting an attack to come from anywhere.

"You're very good, Amarai Reiki." a voice echoed off the walls, making it nearly impossible to track. "You noticed my trap and expertly avoided any physical harm. Very well done."

_'Another person who thinks I'm this Amarai?'_ Keiji rolled his eyes. _'I don't have time for this.'_

"Excuse me," Keiji called upward, guessing that was where his assailant was. "I do not have time for this. I must get to the school where I work. I am no dragon demon, nor any form of demon for that matter. I don't know why it is that Ryoushi or you would think of me as a dragon demon, but please understand that I it is not me."

The voice laughed, as though Keiji had told some new and highly original joke. "Amarai Reiki, age twenty, and has silver hair." The bounty hunter was listing what little information he had been given for identifying his target. "You were exiled from your royal clan a little over two months ago, and have been trying to blend in with the humans ever since, dodging bounty hunters and demon slayers alike."

_'So that's who they're after, and why there's a bounty on his head.'_ Keiji noted. It was a common practice amongst dragon demons to disown some of their members for one reason or another, which usually led to rebellion and rivalries, leading to the death of at least one member of the clan or another.

"I am merely a man." Keiji tried again. "If you would like, you can check with my landlord or my records, and you'd see that I was both human and have been living in this apartment for the past thirty months." Again the voice laughed, but lighter this time.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you demon? I go and check, giving you the alone time you need to break out of this cage that I spent all night setting up, and then you move to another city. It would take months for anyone to find out that you're not in this city any longer, and then it would be nearly impossible to pick up your trail again for many more months. Sorry, no can do. Now, I think it's time that I killed you and went to collect on that reward the authorities put up."

Keiji barely had time to deduce as he heard a loud bang and the ground next to him popped and a tiny crater formed. _The hunter had shot at him!_ Fortunately, he had missed, but just barely.

Not wasting time for the killer to realign his weapon, Keiji bolted to the side, but was cut off by a brick wall. Turning around, there was another brick wall, with a steel cage on either end. He was trapped. He could only run so far, and he could only dodge bullets for so long. Pushing off of the wall, Keiji felt a fragment of brick cut the skin on the back of his neck, a bullet having fired when he moved, destroying a brick and firing a piece of shrapnel at Keiji's body. Tripping, Keiji began to roll, two more shots barely missing him.

"Stubborn dragon! Die!" the hunter shouted, firing the last two rounds in his clip. "Fine, if you want to be that way, I'll have to use something that doesn't need to be as accurate."

Sweating with fear, Keiji took the thirty second pause to try and catch his breath, while also checking the bullet holes in the ground in an attempt to determine where the tracker was, but he didn't have time. Hearing the clicking of a gun being prepped, Keiji jumped to the side and began to roll again, this time it seeming like an explosion had gone off behind him. Stopping in a crouch, Keiji looked and saw a much larger hole than the previous ones, this one made up of dozens of smaller ones.

_'He's using a shotgun!'_ he realized. Quickly Keiji realized he only had one chance at escaping alive. He'd been extremely lucky thus far to have avoided the shots he had, but he didn't want to overtax the spirits that were guarding him. Rising to his feet, he heard another click.

"Wait!" he shouted. When the impending gunshot did not go off, he took it as a signal to continue. "It's obvious that I can't convince you that I'm not this Amarai, and I guess that you're used to demons lying to you about such things. However, if you'd at least give me a chance, I'm sure we can resolve this."

"I'm not a negotiator, demon. I just kill, and then I collect."

"Perhaps," Keiji took a deep breath, wincing in pain slightly as he realized that he had been hit by the last attack, a few of the small shotgun pellets having struck his right ankle, which he hadn't realized while his adrenaline had been pumping. "Perhaps we could have a Darkness Game. Surely you have the skills to start one up. If you win, I go with you. If you win, you let me go and admit I'm not a demon." Reaching into his bag, Keiji began to withdraw his Duel Disk, which he took with him to school, since some students would hold mini tournaments before and after school. Also, it gave him what he needed to discipline some of the more problematic students in a way that didn't force him to monitor detention or to physically hard the students.

"Sorry, Amarai." the hunter once again shouted. "I can't initiate Darkness Games. You'd have to."

"Except I am not a demon, and so I cannot initiate one either." Keiji called, trying to bite back his fear. If neither of them had the skills to begin a Darkness Game, then he would die, without a doubt.

"Well, if you really want to keep up the human act, even in a time like this, I can't knock some sense into you." the voice growled, and Keiji's eyes widened. "But I think we can make it work." The sound of metal scraping against itself suddenly filled the ally, and when Keiji looked up, he saw a man in khakis, a black shirt, and alligator boots descending, standing on the fire escape ladder that was sliding down, explaining the noise.

Hopping to the ground, the figure tossed something to Keiji, who snatched it out of the air. Meanwhile the man began to fit a Duel Disk to his left arm, speaking to Keiji as he did so. "Fit that onto your arm, demon. This is the twenty-first centuries version of a Darkness Game."

Keiji did so, wondering exactly what this man meant. More than likely the device that was attached to the leather arm band was a device with which the hunter planned to use to deal his own version of a Punishment Game, but how it worked exactly, Keiji had no way of knowing. Although he didn't like the idea of what this device could do, Keiji chose to comply, certain that the man wouldn't tell him until it was secured and activated, but it was better to face the unknown over certain death. With a sigh, he fastened the leather strap around his right upper arm, the weight of the small black box slightly evening out the weight of the Duel Disk on his left arm..

"Every time you summon a monster or lose Life Points, that device will inject you with a slow-killing toxin. Once you win, it will inject you with the antidote, which will neutralize the poison before it can kill you. That is, unless you try and drag this out for more than half an hour. After that point, the poison, no matter where it is injected to, will reach your heart, which will begin to decay, but which will also force the poison into your arteries, from which it'll be pumped rapidly through your bloodstream, and then there's no hope for you." the man explained. However, Keiji also noted that the man didn't have such a device on his arm. Apparently, Keiji would be the only one who might die. Then again, the possibility of death was still much better than the certainty.

"Let's duel!" they both shouted, drawing their cards. However, the hunter was the first to draw a sixth card. "To start things off, I, Ichiro Zuki will set one monster in defense mode, and end my turn." (ILP: 4000)

Drawing a card, Keiji decided to take his time in thinking up a plan for counter attacking. The instant he summoned, he'd be poisoned, and then he wouldn't have time to think up elaborate strategies. Best to plan as well as he could now to prepare for the future.

"I summon Ranger of Nightfall (1800/1500) in attack mode." A sharp stab of pain interrupted Keiji's thought process for a second. Assuming it was the needle injecting the poison, he turned back to the duel while a man in forest clothes and a navy blue cloak and hoisting a shorthanded axe appeared. "Now I'll use his special ability, sacrificing him to special summon any two Ranger's from my deck to the field whose levels are each four or less." Shattering into pixels, Keiji slipped the card of his monster into his graveyard and pulled out his deck, searching for the two cards he had already decided upon. Slapping them onto his Duel Disk, Keiji smiled, even as two different needles pierced his skin. It was a good plan.

The first new Ranger was dressed in black, with a black cape that was decorated with streaks of light at random places. The second was in brown clothes with a green cloak. "Ranger of the Eclipse (1900/1900) and Ranger of the Falling Stars (1700/1400)." Grabbing two more cards, Keiji slipped them into his magic zone. "I set one card face downand play my magic card, Starry Night, which will raise the attack points of every Ranger on my field by 300."

As he spoke, a face down card appeared in front of Keiji while the sky above the field suddenly turned dark with hundreds -no thousands- of stars, giving a very celestial look to it all. Both of Keiji's monsters smiled, barely visible with the new lack of light. They were now in their own environment. They were outlaws who moved by night, and they were good at it. (Eclipse-2200) (Falling Stars-2000)

_'He only summoned a monster, without any further protection. It's a wall. Most monsters that are used as a wall have a defense around two thousand._' Keiji analyzed the field. _'If I want to beat him quickly, I'll have to use Ranger of the Eclipse first, since he has a much higher chance of destroying whatever it is that this guy set. Ranger of the Falling Stars won't do as much damage when I attack directly, but it'll still cut Ichiro's Life Points in half. Plus, if it's a flip-effect monster, he'll go after Ranger of the Falling Stars with it, and I can use his effect to negate it.'_

"Ranger of the Eclipse, attack his monster!" Keiji ordered. Retrieving a crossbow from his cloak, the ranger took am and fired an arrow at high speeds. Just before the arrow connected, Ichiro's face down monster appeared, displaying a set of stakes with some sort of fibrous substance hung from them, forming a net, and with a human face pushing out from the center. However the arrow kept going and tore through the net with ease. As the barrier faded away, though, the feminine face let loose a horrid shriek and Keiji's monster gripped his head before disappearing as well and the shot was ejected from Keiji's Duel Disk.

Beating him to the question, Ichiro explained. "Wall of Illusions (1000/1850) will return any monster that attacks it to its owners hand." Nodding, Keiji placed the card back into his hand before continuing.

"When Ranger of the Eclipse destroys a monster, I may place one card from my graveyard back into my hand, so I'll shuffle Ranger of Night back into my deck. Now, Ranger of the Falling Stars, attack directly!" Drawing his short sword, the man in the green cloak charged the field and slashed at Ichiro, who was forced backwards a bit, but nothing worse. (ILP:2000) "End." Keiji finished, looking at his watch. _'Five minutes have passed. Not bad, but still not good, either.'_

"I admit, Amarai, that was an excellent opening play. One worthy of your lineage." Ichiro growled while drawing a card, giving him six, twice that of Keiji. "I play Tiny Pound Hammer to shuffle my hand back into my deck and then draw a new hand of the same size." Placing the five remaining cards back on top of his ejected deck and swiftly shuffling, Ichiro drew a new hand, and seemed somewhat pleased with what he had drawn. Selecting another card, he made his play.

"I activate Cost Down to discard one card and then downgrade the levels of my monsters by two for the turn. That will allow me to summon this monster in defense mode." While placing the magic card and the discarded cards into his graveyard, a card appeared in a horizontal position in front of Ichiro, leaving him with two cards in his hand. "The card I discarded was a magic card called Tailcoat Summon and can activate from my graveyard, allowing me to special summon a monster from my hand if I summoned a monster which is normally high leveled. Since the monster I summoned is normally greater than a level four monster, it is considered as such, and so I can summon this other monster that was downgraded, known as Criosphinx (1200/2400) in defense mode."

What appeared next was a sphinx unlike any Keiji had seen before -and he had seen many. It had the body of lion, but unlike other sphinx monsters, it had the head and wings of an eagle. Although not exactly threatening in appearance, it also had a strong look in it's eyes, meaning it would not give in without a fight.

"I'll set one card face down. I end my turn there." Keiji completed, leaving himself with no cards in hand.

_'Just one face down card.'_ Keiji pondered. _'And he set it as an afterthought. That means he's got a lot of faith in that face down monster of his. Or maybe it's because of the effect of his sphinx that he has so much faith. I don't know what Criosphinx does, though. Keh, don't let yourself get distracted with that right now. For now, I'll assume he's running a Bounce Deck, meaning both his sphinx and his face down monster would have an effect dealing with sending my monsters back to my hand. As such, it would be better to trigger it this turn, while I can deal with it, rather than leave Ichiro with more resources. Sadly, I don't know many of the bounce strategy cards, since they aren't very widespread in the dueling mainstream.'_

"I re-summon Ranger of the Eclipse (1900+300/1900) in attack mode, and I'll have him attack your set monster!" Drawing forth the arbalest, the black caped warrior fired his arrow at the horizontal card, the image changing to that of the monster that it was. It was, in truth, a small model of the actual sphinx statue in Egypt, made of stone. The arrow shattered on impact.

"Guardian Sphinx (1700/2400) is much stronger than most monsters, in respect to its defense score. Anything else?" Upon seeing the monsters defense points, Keiji instantly realized that his monster, even with the power up from Starry Night, was still too weak to break through, meaning Keiji would lose Life Points. (KLP:3800) As the Life Point counter ticked down a small amount, Keiji gasped as he felt another needle burry itself under his skin, injecting a tiny bit more venom to his bloodstream.

"Also," Ichiro smirked, holding out his hand. "I activate Shield Backlash. When you attack a monster with a higher defense than your monsters attack, this trap card destroys all attack mode monsters on your field." Grimacing, Keiji watched as a wave of purple light shot out from the trap card and dissolved his two Rangers. Glancing at his face down card, Keiji added one more, and ended his turn.

Frowning at the card he had drawn, Ichiro kept it in his hand and then placed his hands on his Guardian Sphinx card. "I switch Guardian Sphinx to attack mode and have it attack you directly." Suddenly, and much to Keiji's utter shock, the statue seemingly came to life, lifting itself from the position it had always been in to stomp over to Keiji's field, paw outstretched to stomp on the young man, who was pressing a button on his Duel Disk.

"I activate the card I set on my first turn, Command Silencer, stopping your attack and letting me draw one card." he explained as a totem pole with a speaker in the mouth of one of the carved animals appeared, emitting a loud shriek. The statue froze, placed it's foot down, returned to it's previous position, and returned to a crouch.

With a sigh, Ichiro reached for the card, lifting it off of the plate a few inches. "During my turn, I can flip this monster face down." he explained as the image of the statue vanished and was replaced by a horizontal card. "Go ahead Amarai, drag this out. You only have twenty-one minutes remaining before the poison kills you. I don't need to be offensive, I just need to hold out that long."

Not bothering to correct this man as to what his name was, Keiji bit back his lip. Of course, he was right. Nine minutes had passed, and thirty was just the estimate for how long it would take for the poison to reach his heart. With the extra doses he had received over the last few turns, it was possible it might take effect sooner.

_'No, don't get distracted. It's just what he wants.'_ Drawing a card, he looked over the four in his hand.

"I summon Starlight Ranger (1500+300/1300) in attack mode. Then I'll end my turn." he finished, unable to do anything else.

"Now I can show you what my Guardian Sphinx can really do." Ichiro smiled while placing his drawn card into his hand. He then grabbed the face down card on his Duel Disk and flipped it up into attack mode. Again the stone sphinx appeared, battle ready. "When I flip this monster up manually, it returns all of your monsters to your hand." he laughed as Keiji's only monster was thrown from the Duel Disk and snatched out of the air. "Now my Criosphinx activates its effect, discarding one of your cards from your hand whenever one of your monsters is returned to your hand." Sighing, a spectral hand reached out of Keiji's graveyard and pointed at one of the cards in his hand, which he slipped into his graveyard.

"Now Guardian Sphinx, attack!" Again becoming animated, the ancient statue closed the gab between it and Keiji and lifted its paw. At the last second, Keiji jumped to the side, easily dodging the oncoming attack. However, the damage was still there. (KLP:2100) "End."

As he drew, Keiji felt a sudden wave of dizziness overcome him. Touching his right hand to his temple, he blinked a few times to try and clear his slightly blurred vison. _'The poison. It's begun to affect my body. I have to finish this fast. However, as it stands, summoning monsters would be a wasted effort and would only cost me more cards from my hand.'_

"I set one card face down and end my turn." Keiji finished, leaving him with three cards yet again.

"Not summoning monsters to try and protect your in-hand cards?" Ichiro asked, seeing right through Keiji's plan. Obviously, Keiji wasn't trying anything original. "Well, if that's how you're gonna do things, I guess I'll just finish you here. I summon Hyper Hammerhead (1500/1200) in attack mode." A brown scaled dinosaur appeared on the field, its head shaped, very fittingly, like a hammer, jumping up and down in a frenzy. "And I'll flip up Guardian Sphinx into attack mode, and have them attack and finish you off."

In a fit of energy, the dinosaur leapt across the field and craned back its head for an attack. However, Keiji refused to let it. "Go face down card, Polarization Prism, which takes the damage I would be dealt, and instead deals it to your monster, draining him of his attack points." As the head came swinging down, a crystal appeared around Keiji, holding firm against the attack before thrusting the lizard backwards and dropping its attack points (0/1200). However, this did not stop the massive statue from days long past from attempting to crush Keiji, who once again sidestepped the attack, but still took damage, and again a needle pierced his skin. (KLP:400) Flipping the sphinx face down, Ichiro nodded, signaling the end of his turn.

Drawing a card, Keiji noticed that his arms were both shaking. _'Fifteen minutes left.'_ Again shaking his head, he wiped some sweat from his brow, noticing the rise in his temperature. "I summon..." he paused and panted for a moment. "Starlight Ranger (1500+300/1300)." Once again the light blue cloaked warrior appeared, tightly gripping his staff. "Attack Hyper Hammerhead!" he commanded. The Ranger lifted his staff and used it as a pole-vault to cross the field and fling himself into a flying kick, crushing the dinosaur under his heal. (ILP:200)

"Fool, any monster that battles Hyper Hammerhead is returned to your hand." Ichiro taunted as Kieji picked the card up off of his Duel Disk and returned it to his hand. Then the ghostly hand reached up from the graveyard and selected the returned Ranger, which Keiji discard. "You've defeated yourself by clearing your field for me."

_'He's right.'_ Keiji scolded himelf. _'If I had been thinking clearly, I would have equipped my Ranger with the card in my hand, and would have had the power to finish him off.'_ Setting a card face down, he ended.

"Game, set and match." Ichiro laughed. "If you think your little bluff will do you any good, you're sadly mistaken. I saw the despair in your eyes after your monster returned to your hand. You don't have anything to save you." he laughed. Keiji normally would have said something to try and toy with Ichiro's head, but his own head was currently swimming, and a battle of wits was currently a lost cause. "Hm, with a dragon hide I could made a new coat to go along with my boots." the hunter continued to laugh.

"Take your turn!" Keiji nearly shouted, using far more energy than he knew was wise. Again reaching for his head, he tried desperately to clear hi vision. _'Just keep focusing on your face down card. Do NOT forget about the face down card!'_

"Fine, not that it matters. I flip over Guardian Sphinx, who will attack you directly, ending the game, and releasing the remainder of the poison into your bloodstream." Once more the stone beast appeared and raised it's paw.

"Go..." Keiji gasped, trying to reach his Duel Disk to activate the set card, but his muscles were slowing down, and they burned. "Weakening of Attack is a quick-play card that negates the attack and ends your battle phase." he explained, still trying to reach the activation button. _'Come on!'_ With a final burst of desperation, Keiji managed to punch his knuckle into the button, and the card flipped up, stopping the attack.

"Fine, you got one more turn." Ichiro grunted, flipping Guardian Sphinx face down. "Then again, I doubt you'll survive to play it out. Even if you did, I'm not too worried about the power of a nearly dead demon's brain."

Reaching for his deck, Keiji winced as his body protested completely. He felt as though he had been standing still while holding a bag of rocks in each hand for days, while his head seemed to be in the clouds. _'I refuse to lose as an innocent man! I will not be a demons scapegoat!'_ he told himself, trying to bring his mind back to reality.

Much to his surprise, it seemed to work, and his arm drew the card without and trouble. For just a few seconds, Keiji felt like he could think clearly, and he felt warm. Not the burning feeling of the poison, but a warm, gentle feeling. Brushing it off as an effect of the poison nearing its final stage, he slapped the drawn monster onto his Duel Disk, and a man in a cloak the color and pattern of sunset appeared.

"Sunset Ranger (1200+300/900) is summoned the instant I draw him, although I would have summoned him regardless." he uttered, reaching for another of his cards. "I play Shooting Star Bow, an equipment magic card that will lower his attack points by one thousand. However, since I'm equipping him with a card, Starry Night gives him two hundred more attack points per equip card (700)."

"Why bother? Even with its base attack strength, it wasn't nearly strong enough to defeat my monsters. You're screwed." Ichiro shrugged. Then, after a quick afterthought, he suddenly realized something. "Unless your Shooting Star Bow has another effect."

"It does." Keiji breathed deeply. "It allows the equipped monster to attack directly." Raising the bow, the outlaw knocked an arrow, aimed, and fired. The arrow whizzed by Criosphinx and the face down Guardian Sphinx, nailing Ichiro in the chest. He stumbled backwards a bit, and then snarled deeply before turning his head away in frustration. (ILP:0)

Keiji, on the other hand, was just relieved as he felt one final needle penetrate his skin and administer the antidote, which was obviously much faster in action than the actual poison, and he felt the first signs of relief quickly enough.

"As promised, Amarai, I will release you for now." he snarled, pulling out a remote control and pressing a button. The gates on either end of the ally instantly began to rise. "You do realize I won't be the last one, correct?" Keiji slumped down against the brick wall, barely hearing the other man. Snorting in defeat, Ichiro walked away, leaving Keiji alone in the alleyway.

Glancing at his watch, Keiji realized that the first period of the day was starting right now! That meant he was late, and in Japan, late is a bad thing. A very bad thing. Something Keiji couldn't afford.

With new adrenaline in his veins and the poison neutralized, he stood up again, and returned to his morning routine; the part where he walks to work.

Lunch had finally come, something Keiji had thought would never arrive. He was still so afflicted by the poison that work had felt like worse than normal and the hours seemed eternal. However, his body was once again functioning normally, albeit beyond exhausted. However, he couldn't afford to lose the hours now, because if he missed them now, he'd be dead if he ever reached a point in which he couldn't conceivably come to work. He'd just been chewed out enough by the principal in a lecture about responsibilities to the students and such. Keiji had opted to omit the details of why he was late, and had lied, saying there had been a construction project new his apartment that had slowed all traffic of every kind to a halt. Something that, in retrospect, wasn't really a lie, since Keiji was the only traffic down they alley most of the time, and Ichiro had said he had built that cage over night.

Pouring over the book in front of him, Keiji began to try and find something on Darkness Games to explain the odd feeling he had the night before. So far he had learned about the ten level scale for Darkness Games, the fact that there were some humans gifted enough to tap them, and the effects that they had on the weak-minded, but nothing about how a Darkness Game could feel...normal?

"This is interesting." he noted, taking out a pad of sticky notes and a pen. "'Some humans have, over the ages, become so violent towards demons that they have dedicated themselves to the eradication of the demon genome. Sometimes this hostility results in Orders of demon slayers, pseudo-cult organizations that make it their purpose in life to destroy demons and 'protect humanity'. Some have-'" Keiji stopped, the bell ringing. Sticking a note on that page, he closed the book and stood up.

It was time to make up for his screw up this morning, meaning he was stuck giving the lecture in biology about half-demons. It was a subject few teachers liked to give, since it was such a controversial subject. Although Keiji enjoyed lecturing, this one was, without a doubt, a true punishment, and when combined with the stress effects of being poisoned, terrified the most witty of professors.

Stepping into the classroom, he put his bag on the table, grabbed up some chalk, and began to scribble on the board.

"Class, today we will be talking about humans and demons crossbreeding..."

_To Be Continued..._

There you go. Another chapter done, and in record time by me. This will be one of the last duels Keiji will have that wont be so serious. Next time we see him, be prepared for a long and harsh duel!

Also, all Ranger cards are created by me, Time Mage. So were Tailcoat Summon, Shield Backlash, and probably just about any other card you didn't recognize (Or it belongs to Seeker of the Soul), with the exception of Polarization Prism, which is a card from Yu-Gi-Oh R, the current manga series.

Review Responses (Note, I will be responding to the last chapter that I posted)-

Gearfried the Iron Angel- Good to hear from you. Keep on enjoying, and expect the first chapter of my sequel to Battle City sometime over the next week.

G.O.T. Nick- Yeah, wish we could have you on the team, but, like you said, you don't have the capacity, sadly. But, it's good to hear that you liked my last chapter and the new cards so much.

Noble Paladin- Hope this was equally kickass. And yes, dragon demons are rare, hence why Amarai is so sought after.

John- Don't underestimate a D.D. Deck that one of us makes (That one is a hybrid of cards by all three of us). The metagame doesn't apply in the universe of our fics, so we can make whatever kinds of decks we please that could kick ass, even against a Chaos deck.

Raine Vindicare- That's funny. You know why it's so funny? Because you couldn't make any Ranger cards right now, even if you wanted to, because you don't yet know how they work. I've gone out of my way to keep from revealing the main strategy behind them, so you could make some, except they wouldn't work in Keiji's deck.

Neo Arkadia- Strap in for the long ride.

See ya.

_Welcome back to my side of the street, ladies and gentlemen. This is your head Demon Expert Wolf General. Amarai is still on the run, and because of his condition all he can do is run. However, the Shadow Trackers and their mysterious employer are still after him, and this time it's a duel where there is more than just his life on the line. Check it all out in "Sealed? Cyber Dragon Lockdown!" _


	5. Sealed! Cyber Dragon Lockdown?

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Walking Another's Path

Chapter 5: Sealed? Cyber Dragon Lockdown!

"Huh? Hey, where'd that cute girl go?"

Amarai opened his eyes slowly and fixed his molten bronze gaze onto the guy sitting next to him. "Disappear please."

"Y…Yes sir." Leaping out of his seat, the man ran into the next car, leaving Amarai with this entire subway car to himself.

Rubbing his eyes with his hand, Amarai felt so frustrated. ("This is all the fault of that old librarian…ancient power of the moon…") A low growl left his throat and he punched his fist the metal seat next to him. "What a joke! Hahahahahaha, hilarious!" From within the punched chair the sound of metal tearing could be heard. ("Yeah sure, power of the moon goddess, absolutely perfect indeed…god damn it!")

It seemed like so long ago. Back when he was living with his family, they held one of the world's greatest libraries of demon literature and history ever made. Amarai would spend hours upon hours pouring over each and every book, learning all he could about the world's past. And then one day he came across a legend about the eight elemental spirits who created this world. Earth, Wind, Water, Fire, Darkness, Light, Moon and Life. Each of these eight, according to the book, existed in different hidden places across the planet.

When the old man who took care of the library heard of Amarai's interest in these Seals, he told him a rumor of an ancient statue some humans found in Italy that was called the Moon Goddess. Interested, Amarai went there and sure enough found the statue.

But from that point onward he was living in hell. ("My body absorbed the statue's energy completely…I contain the ancient essence of Luna, goddess of the moon. With such extra power I would be able to match my eldest brother…but…") His fist clenched so tightly it started to bleed. ("Then it began. Every time I would see any kind of bright circle…anything like the moon…I'd pass out. I'm still not sure what actually happens to me, but all I know is I keep waking up and passing out at the worst times. I have no choice but to run, and search for a way to break this power before it ruins my life!")

There was a loud ding noise as the subway train came to a stop. "Orange Station! Next stop after this one is Green Station, but that's a ways away so if you want to get some snacks for the ride then now's your chance."

Scoffing, Amarai sat back and tried with all of his willpower to keep his eyes closed. ("As long as I don't see the representations, I'm absolutely fine.")

A few minutes later the train was moving again and he felt a lot better. ("It could be a million times worse…") A tingle ran up his spine. ("Great, something's about to…") There was a loud screeching noise as the brakes of the subway activated and brought everything to a halt. ("We stopped? Why?")

"Attention ladies and gentlemen…" A voice crackled over the loudspeaker. "This should only take a moment. The police simply need to make a quick check for a dangerous criminal that might be on board your train, so please bear with us until we are sure he isn't on board."

Amarai dead-panned at nothing in particular. ("They're not even trying anymore.") He heard the sound of approaching feet from the car before him and sighed. "It can't be helped, but this time I'd rather fight than deal with these annoyances in the normal retreating fashion."

The door slowly opened and a rather laidback man with a cigarette hanging out of one side of his mouth walked into the car. "Yo."

Amarai nearly face-fell, his momentary fear of a possible threat gone. "What…are you really a Shadow Tracker? Are you one of them?"

"Yup." The man brushed back some of his lazy black stringy hair and readjusted his sunglasses. "Name's Rioge Mario, and it's a pleasure to finally meet you, Amarai." Taking the unlit cigarette out of his mouth, he flicked it behind a nearby seat cushion and took a deep breath. "So…shall we get this done with? I've been paid a nice sum of money to tear you apart."

Amarai narrowed his eyes slowly. "Don't flatter yourself so easily, or have you forgotten that I could, with ease, utterly destroy you with a single blast of my power." Flexing his hand, he smiled darkly to try and play the 'evil demon' part as best he could. "Would you like to taste my fire, human?"

"Not before you taste mine." Rioge held up a small black device that his fingers were laced into. "This is a detonator, and if you so much as look at me the wrong way I'll blow up this whole subway train, the forty plus people on board, and you."

"You'll die as well."

"True, but die by your hands or by mine would be my options if it came to violence." Rioge removed his duel disk from his coat and slid it onto his arm. "Then again, if you play along and duel me there won't be a problem at all, now will there?"

Amarai snarled and a silver and bronze duel disk appeared on his forearm. "Very well, I accept your challenge. However, you must…"

Rioge held up his hand. "Hang on there. There's no need for a darkness game."

Amarai was a little surprised by that. ("Normally these men activate darkness games so they can enforce their rules on me, but in this case…") "Why not?"

"I can tell a man of honor when I see em." Rioge activated his disk. "I win, you come with me. You win, I'll take a hike and the bomb will be defused. Deal?"

"Sure, sounds like fun." Amarai dueled for his life more than he dueled for pleasure, yet this seemed like some kind of odd fusion of the two. ("How bizarre…this is the first of the Shadow Trackers who have ever been…worthy of some meager respect. However, I'll take him out with my ultimate killer combo…Cyber End Civilization…")

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 4000

"I begin." Rioge drew the top card of his deck and turned it over to reveal a smiling green jar. "First my Pot of Greed card lets me draw two extra cards, which is pretty handy." Adding two cards to his hand, he inserted one of those cards into his disk. "Now then, let's get this over and done with. I play Dark Designator. I declare the name of one card and if that card is in your deck you place it into your hand, got it? I'm calling Cyber Dragon."

Amarai narrowed his eyes but didn't complain as his deck spat out a card and he added it to his hand. ("That's one Cyber Dragon…")

"I play another two Dark Designators, so if you please…Cyber Dragon." Rioge calmly watched as Amarai added two more of his trademark monsters to his hand. "And now then, the pinch maneuvers which will leave you out of the battle." Taking three of his remaining four cards and inserting them into his disk, he watched as they appeared on the field face-down. "I set three cards face-down on the field."

Amarai wasn't sure what this man was doing, but he felt nervous about it. ("He's too calm…so calm I'm worried as to what cards he is holding. Why give me my Cyber Dragon Trio so easily?")

Rioge held up the last card in his hand. "Now for the magic card Coins from Heaven."

Amarai gasped in surprise. "That…that forces us both to draw cards from our deck until we're holding six…"

"Right." Rioge drew the top six cards off of his deck. "Of course, with the eight cards you're holding it's kind of moot point, huh?" Fanning out his new hand, Rioge lazily slid a card into his disk. "One continuous magic card, Dimensional Sealing Portal." A glowing blue gateway appeared on his field. "During this turn, all cards that are removed from play are sealed into this gateway and cannot be accessed until the gateway is destroyed."

Amarai frowned at how strangely his opponent was acting. ("He's doing this so methodically I'm not sure what to say to him.")

"Reverse cards open." Rioge snapped his fingers and his three face-down cards flipped up. "D.D. Designator lets me declared one card name and if that card is in your hand it is removed from the game. Triple Cyber Dragons."

Amarai paled to a near white as his three key monsters vanished in a burst of crystal blue light. ("No!")

Rioge stretched out his back. "Now that we're done with that annoying little piece, let's move on to the next part. Since your Cyber Dragons are no longer a threat, let's neutralize the rest of your carefully laid out plans. I play the magic cards Grasping Hands of Nightmare. One card at random will be discarded from your hand at the cost of 500 life points apiece." Three disembodied hands appeared in front of Amarai and snatched three cards out of his hand.

Rioge- 2500

Amarai- 4000

Amarai just looked at the last two cards in his hand. ("Terraforming and Cyber Serpent…both useless without the other three I had.")

"I'm not done yet, so don't space out over there. Delinquent Duo, at the cost of 1000 life points, forces you to discard one card at random from you hand and then discard a chosen card from your hand, meaning the cards you're holding are grave food." Rioge inserted his magic card into the graveyard, leaving him with only one card in hand.

Rioge- 1500

Amarai- 4000

Rioge saw the look on Amarai's face, a look of slight hope. "You're thinking that I don't have anything left? Sorry, but Research on the Pot of Greed lets me draw two cards during the turn Pot of Greed is played." Adding two cards to his hand, he looked at them both and smirked. "I'll do you a favor Amarai. I'll let you have the first draw. I play Reverse Cost. By discarding a card from my hand, I can return my life points to the total they were at the start of the turn."

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 4000

Amarai just stood there, his eyes wide in amazement. ("What a surprising guy…he's…what was the purpose of this? The only advantage he has now is that my three Cyber Dragons are sealed. It's a painful disadvantage, but considering he has no monsters in play my drawing one would be a waste of a draw.")

"Something the matter?" Rioge lifted an eyebrow and adjusted his glasses. "It's your turn, ya know?"

"Yeah…sorry." Amarai drew, truly unnerved by how calm this man was. ("It was interesting at first, but after his masterful drawing I'm not sure what it means.")

"I'm sure you're wondering how I managed to do all that in one turn…it's a matter of a true duelist." Rioge crossed his arms across his chest lazily. "I like to call my little talent Flash Draw. Essentially, it's the power of the perfect draw. There's no cheating behind it, I just always draw the right cards for any game I play. I'm not a gambler though, and I'm normally the kind of guy to up and start hunting guys I know aren't bad."

"Then why are you doing this?" Amarai was worried now, because this opponent seemed beyond professional. This kind of calm dueling style came with a true heart of a darkness game player. ("He's played in darkness games obviously, but I still worry as to what plans he might have in the background. Just because he has no cards in his hand doesn't mean he isn't a threat, since he placed himself in this position.")

"Why?" Rioge shrugged a little bit. "Honestly, I heard you were a good duelist and I needed the help of the guy after you to find you. Was it all to duel you? Kind of…because I heard a few rumors about your talents as both a duelist and as a fighter."

"You want to fight me? Seriously, tell me what you want!" Amarai wasn't in the mood to play this man's dodging game. "Come on…"

"Sheesh, fine fine." Rioge took off his glasses to reveal a pair of brown hardened eyes that didn't reflect his body's laziness at all. "I wanted to see your firepower, hence why I sealed away those Cyber Dragons at the start of the duel. I know of the style of demon arts you do, Amarai Reiki. Flash Style…a series of rapid movements that make the user appears as if they had disappeared into thin air."

"Why challenge me to a duel if you wanted to see me fight? I don't understand you at all, human." Amarai was at his last straw, and if it broke he was pretty sure he'd beat the crap out of this guy. "Quit toying with me…"

"Who said I was toying with you?" Rioge closed his eyes slowly. "It's a simple matter really…I want to see your Flash Duelist skills. That's all."

Amarai closed his eyes and frowned. "Oh…I see….very well…" His hand rubbed the top of his deck. "I'll give it to you…I'll show you my Flash skills. That's what you wanted…that's why you cleared the field. A duel of Topdecking, with the winner being the one with the better Flash Draw, right?"

"I wouldn't call what I heard about you Flash Draw, but you pretty much hit the nail on the head." Rioge closed his eyes. "Please don't disappoint me. If you succeed…I'll help you out with your little problem."

Amarai's eyes widened at that declaration. "You…you can remove this problem?"

"Right. That is of course if you can defeat me." Rioge pointed at the dragon demon. "It's your turn, right?"

"Yeah it is…and I know just the strategy to beat you with now." Amarai drew, the card flickering gold for a moment when he drew it. "I play Side Deck Breaker. At this time both players may access their side decks and replaced cards located there with cards from their deck." Removing a small set of fifteen cards from his pocket, he took out his deck and made a few adjustments to it before replacing it. "Alright, Flash Duel preparations complete."

Rioge slid his deck back into place. "Yeah, I was hoping you were ready for this…now then, let's get this duel started for real."

They both smiled slightly, eager to test each other's ability at drawing. "Duel!"

_To be continued…_

From the mind of Seeker of the Soul…

_In this world there are those who are the hunted and those who are the hunters. However, at one point in a hunter's journey does he cease being the hunter, and become the prey? Juushin descends to Kyoto, ready to deliver this answer._


	6. Hunters and Hunted

Author's Note: Yo, more from me, Seeker of the Soul.

**Chapter Six: Hunters and Hunted**

The cab door swung open, and the occupant exited, paying the driver who quickly drove off. Once the cab was gone the man who had exited tilted his head up to look at the bustling city around him. "Kyoto, it's been quite some time."

Juushin stretched his arms out over his head, stretching and taking in a deep breath. "Ah yes, the smell of human civilization, virtually untainted by demons. Of course, it's been tainted now. I'll have to cut to the heart of the matter before the taint spreads. I'd hate to have to turn Kyoto into rubble."

Shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans, Juushin began walking down the sidewalk, casually strolling through the human traffic, people naturally moving to avoid him. He simply exuded an aura of authority that made people move, even though he was dressed casually in jeans and a long sleeved black shirt. The sun glinted off of the dark sun glasses that hid his eyes. "Twelve years, and still this place seems the same."

He paused as he passed a noodle cart, and then without a word he slid into an empty seat, the other customers ignoring him. "I think I'll have the Oden, beef please. Is tempura an option?"

"Of course, I also have a spicy beef version if you'd like th…at. Kyouki? It is you! Why you old dog, it's been twelve years and you haven't changed a bit!" The gray haired Japanese man who was running the noodle shop grinned like a maniac at Juushin. The other customers looked at them oddly.

Juushin's lips quirked up into an odd smile as the old man gushed at him. "You never had any tact Ken, none at all. Although I must admit, it's been a while since I've heard the name Kyouki."

Ken grinned broadly, and made shooing gestures to the rest of the people sitting there. "Sorry folks, I'm closing up shop to catch up with an old friend. This old boy here owes me a story or two."

Grumbling the others got up and left, clutching their food in their hands as they searched for somewhere else to eat. Ken leaned forward over the temporary counter, still grinning. "You'll always be Kyouki to me, even though you've come up in the world since that was your given title. What do they call you now, Juushin was it?"

"That's right, I've moved up in the world since those old days. You on the other hand, you've got even more gray hair than I remember. Have these past twelve years really been that stressful? Retiring to run a noodle shop a difficult life?" The two old friends grinned at each other, sharing a laugh.

When their laughter quieted, Ken leaned in very closely so that he was practically right in Juushin's face. Carefully he whispered to his old friend. "Yes, but I'm old after my time. You on the other hand, twelve years since last I saw you and still you look twenty-five."

Juushin shrugged, brushing some of his medium length black locks of hair out of the way of his sunglasses. His handsome features seemed to grow grimmer as he contemplated the situation. "Yes, there are benefits and curses to being me."

Ken pointed at the sunglasses that covered his old friend's eyes, looking almost frightened of them. "Are those to hide what I think is beneath? Do you really have…that?"

When Juushin nodded, Ken pulled back and brushed his hands against his apron. "Yeah, I was going to make you beef Oden with tempura, wasn't I? Kyouki, I'm retired, I'm done, and you know it. I'm not involved anymore."

"We are never done, the fight is never over, and you know that. Of course, you know perfectly well what's expected, even after you've gone. You knew someone was coming, just not that it was me. Now, let's get this unpleasant part out of the way." Juushin calmly placed a hand on the counter, his lips drawn in a flat and serious line.

The old noodle shop owner clenched his fists together, looking frustrated. "Fine, but…I don't want anything to do with this after this is done. Are we agreed? This is it for me, the very last thing I do for you or the rest of them. We're completely finished once I hand this over."

Ken slid a manila folder across the counter, which Juushin placed his hands over, his mouth still set in that same grim line. "Yes, we're done here. It's really a pity, you were a good friend Ken, but those days are truly gone I suppose."

Slowly the dark haired man stood the folder in his left hand. He turned away, not wanting to look at his old friend any longer. "If we ever see each other again, I just want you to know that it's nothing personal. It's just business."

Then Juushin walked away, leaving Ken standing in the same place. When his old friend faded into the crowd, Ken looked down at his hands, which were balled so tight that his knuckles were free of blood. "It's always personal Kyouki. That's what separates me from you…that is why I couldn't stay. Goodbye for the last time old friend."

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Ryoushi Myou, professional Demon Bounty Hunter, was running. He had done a lot of running during his career, chasing after his bounties, which were usually exceptionally fast. He had chased so many different humans and demons down that his stride had been drilled into a well oiled motion.

This time however, his stride was panicked and faltering as he found himself in a position he had never expected himself to be in. Instead of being the hunter, he had suddenly become the hunted. _'What the hell is that guy?'_

His last two days had not gone well. After spotting his target, the exiled dragon demon Amarai Reiki, he had stalked his prey and initiated a Darkness Game. Unfortunately he had lost, and in a humiliating Punishment Game was inflicted, forcing him to never hunt again.

As if that weren't enough he had been dragged and chucked into a dumpster by old competition, another bounty hunter named Ichiro Zuki. The man's own words were: "You'd be best off thought as vanished trash than a live failure that interacted with the demon. Word of mouth has it that someone big is coming to Kyoto, and he's bloodthirsty."

Ryoushi hadn't gotten to learn anything more, as Ichiro had closed the dumpster lid. All he knew is that he had waited the night, then pulled himself free and headed to the train station to hitch a ride out of town. He had no clue who was coming, but he didn't want to find out.

However, these freaks had been waiting for him. Each of them wore casual clothes, the only oddities being that they all wore broad brimmed hats and surgeon's masks, and their hands were covered by black gloves. _'That and their freaky limbs. Are they demons?'_

Each of the four people who were chasing him had limbs that were longer than normal and out of proportion to their bodies. Worse yet, when they had come after him he had stabbed one in the chest with a long dagger with no result. _'Bastard didn't even bleed! Hell, even demons bleed!'_

He whirled around the corner, coming to a stop and breathing heavily. Inch by inch he peered around the corner, but to his relief found no sign of his pursuers. "Good, I've lost them."

Heaving a sigh of pure relief he turned, only to have his breath catch in his throat. Standing directly in front of him, face covered by a surgeon's mask, was one of the freaks that had been chasing him. "Gah!"

The disguised man's extended arm grasped Ryoushi by the throat, lifting him up and dragging his back against the brick wall. He struggled, swinging his feet into the man's body, but to no effect. "D…damn you…"

"Struggling extends your life, it does not save it." The sinister voice that issued out from behind that surgeon's mask sounded like a man who had gotten his own throat mangled. It was a raspy grating noise, and Ryoushi found himself afraid.

The other three dropped down from above them, and Ryoushi understood why he had lost sight of them. They had taken to the rooftop, following him that way. _'And I fell for it like an amateur…I'm going to die.'_

"You look to be in a bad way there. Being suffocated hurts, feeling your brain functions slowing, your vision fogging, everything growing fuzzy. However, you pass out before you die, so it's an easy way to go." Ryoushi spotted the speaker, a casually dressed man wearing sunglasses who looked to be in his mid-twenties, his black hair blowing in the wind. He was just leaning back against the wall across from Ryoushi.

The newcomer snapped his fingers, and immediately Ryoushi felt the pressure on his throat released, and he dropped to his butt on the ground, gasping for air. When he looked back up, that same man was standing above him, the four men who had hunted him down a handful of feet away. "You were once a demon bounty hunter, but now you've ceased being useful. When a demon bounty hunter is beaten by his quarry, he in turn becomes the hunted. You are…weak."

With a bit of effort Ryoushi craned his neck up and spat at his confronter. Before the spittle even landed a fist slammed into his face, cracking his head back up against the wall. His vision swam again, and when it cleared he saw the strange man wiping blood off his knuckles with a piece of cloth. "That was unkind. I said you were weak, not useless."

Ryoushi's didn't need to reach up his hand to confirm what he could feel. His nose was broken, and blood was dripping down over his lips. That punch had been strong, and faster than he could follow. _'This guy is the one Ichiro was talking about, I know it.'_

"What…what can I do Mr…errr…should I even ask your name?" The other man grinned, and with one hand pulled Ryoushi to his feet. He tossed an arm around Ryoushi's shoulder, grinning at him.

"You're a failure because you targeted Amarai Reiki, the exiled dragon demon, and failed. Now, I don't like bounty hunters because you work for money and not because it's the right thing to do. However, I'll admit you've proven yourself useful because you faced the dragon demon in a duel." Ryoushi gulped, frightened by the friendly tone in this man's voice. It was unnerving.

"You want me to give you input on his dueling strategy? Perhaps tell you his weaknesses?" To Ryoushi's surprise the man laughed in a very friendly manner. Once again it sent a chill down his spine. This didn't seem right at all.

"Oh nothing like that really. You'll tell us his dueling strategy, but your input on how to beat his deck is unneeded. What we do need however is to duel you, to get a measure of Amarai's dueling ability." The man released him, and walked off to the side. Gulping Ryoushi triggered his duel disk and faced the strange man. (RLP: 4000)

A raspy voice caught his ears, and to his surprise the same masked man who had choked him stepped in front. "I am Dolgrune, and I will face you. You are not worthy of facing my Lord." (DLP: 4000)

The masked Dolgrune raised his right arm, and a pure white duel disk appeared on it, already in on position. The masked duelist drew five times, and then a sixth. "I begin this duel to test your strength. Killer Needle(1200/1000) in attack mode!"

A large bee buzzed out from the card, hovering a handful of feet above the ground. Dolgrune lowered his hand of cards, his dark green eyes looking intensely at Ryoushi. "Turn End."

After seeing such a pitiful start to the duel, Ryoushi couldn't help but laugh. "That's it? That's the opening move you had for me? This will be a cake walk! Survivor of the Different Dimension(1800/200), attack!"

A blonde haired figure wrapped in a tattered brown cloak leapt straight out of the card and across the field, slashing Killer Needle in half. Its pieces hung in the air for a second, then burst into pixels. "How pathetic. One card face down, and that's all." (DLP: 3400)

Immediately Dolgrune drew. "Pheromone Wasp(800/800) in attack mode. One card face down. Let this set card be your next test. Turn end."

As Ryoushi drew, he eyed the hovering green wasp with interest. Once again his opponent had deliberately left a weak monster in attack. This time the trap seemed too obvious. "You want me to spring your trap? I'll oblige, but first I summon D.D. Warrior Lady(1500/1600)!"

The armored blonde woman appeared next to her male companion, her glowing blade already drawn. "D.D. Warrior Lady, slay Pheromone Wasp! Dimensional Saber Slash!"

She jumped straight up into the air, then came back down with sword pointed towards the wasp. Ryoushi's eyes went wide as a rasping chuckle issued from behind Dlgrune's mask. "Trap card activates, The Carrier! Pheromone Wasp returns to my hand!"

The wasp vanished, but D.D. Warrior Lady was plunging down. "That's fine with me, she'll go straight for your life points! Easiest duel ever!"

"The Carrier's second effect, I special summon a level four or lower monster from my hand to the field. That monster becomes the target of battle. Iron Beetle(600/2000) in defense mode!" D.D. Warrior Lady crashed into the new monster, blade digging in. (RLP: 3500)

"Fine, both monsters are removed from the game!" The two monsters faded from view, leaving an empty field. "Survivor of the Different Dimension attacks directly!"

The blonde warrior's sword plunged into Dolgrune's body, and then he jumped back to Ryoushi's field. Ryoushi smirked, confident in his battle strategy. This other duelist was really a weakling. "If that's the best you've got then this duel is already over." (DLP: 1600)

Next Ryoushi held up one of his other cards. "Dimensional Distortion special summons a monster from out of play when I have no monsters in the grave. Return to me D.D. Warrior Lady(1500/1600)!"

The female warrior shimmered back into view. "Hehehe…now I activate the continuous magic card Construction of the Gate! In seven turns I'll have this duel won no matter what you do. End!"

Off to the side Juushin smirked, amused by the bounty hunter's confident attitude. _'He's facing Dolgrune without any knowledge of his opponent's true power. Dolgrune, stop playing with him next turn, this is your last turn to toy with him.'_

Dolgrune acknowledged his order with a slight nod of the head before drawing. "Pheromone Wasp(800/800) in defense mode. Next Cell Split creates a copy of it, also in defense."

The green wasp returned, and then it split in half, forming into two identical insects. Ryoushi shrugged, unconcerned since neither was worth anything against him. "End."

Ryoushi drew confidently, but sighed when he saw that it wasn't a monster. Still, he had what he needed to unleash his ultimate monster this turn. "D.D. Warrior Lady and Survivor will exterminate your bugs!"

Twin slashes of swords later and both wasps were gone, leaving Dolgrune's field completely empty. "Now, it's time to unleash my ultimate monster on you! Ritual magic card, Dimensional Rift! I offer both monsters on my field along with D.D. Kuriboh(300/200) from my hand…"

He slipped the card from his ritual deck and slapped it down. A tall imposing warrior who looked much like a holy ruler descended onto the field in their place. "Introducing Lord of the Different Dimension(4000/4000) who when summoned removes all monsters in our graves from the game!"

Each duelist took their fallen monsters and placed them into their pockets, except for one which Ryoushi kept. Then he slapped it down. "When removed from play Survivor returns!"

The male warrior was resummoned, looking weak next to the Lord. "Together they'll crush you. End turn!"

Dolgrune glanced over to Juushin, who once again smirked. Dolgrune nodded back and drew, sneering at his opponent as he looked at the fourth card. "You are weak, weak and insignificant. If this is your power then the demon Amarai will be no challenge for me."

The man slid the drawn card into his hand, then selected another card. Ryoushi looked up at his Lord of the Different Dimension for reassurance. There was no monster that could break through its attack points. "You can't defeat me, my monsters are too powerful!"

"This is why you fail, but if it's strong monsters that you wish to see, than allow us to show you. Field magic card activates! The Hive!" The area around them warped, bands of silken fluids reaching between the brick walls until everything was different.

Ryoushi looked around, feeling slightly nauseas at the sight. Even the ground beneath their feet was formed of the slimy hardened fluids, and eggs pulsated all around them. He could also see insects crawling through holes in walls and then into others, disappearing as fast they had appeared. "I hate insects."

"Yes, most people do, while they fail to realize the good involved. Without insects there would be nothing in that particular niche of nature, and nature would collapse. Insects are as necessary as humans are in this world. And in their natural home of The Hive all insects gain two hundred attack and defense points." Ryoushi shrugged, not worried since it would still take an insect of thirty-nine hundred natural attack points to beat his Lord.

"Now, I activate another effect of The Hive. By discarding a card from my hand I can search for an insect monster and add it to my hand, or special summon an insect from my hand. I discard Immortal Cockroach(1000/1000) for the cost!" A card slid out of his deck, and he held it up.

"When Immortal Cockroach goes to the cemetery it instantly returns to my hand. So next I discard it to special summon the monster I searched for. Emerge mighty Insect Queen(2200/2400)!" A hideous six-limbed monstrosity emerged from a hole in the Hive, its massive beady eyes looking down on Ryoushi as its mouth clicked hungrily.

"Since Immortal Cockroach returned to my hand I'll discard it again to search for an insect, then pick it up, and then discard to special summon my monster. Cyclone Mantis(1500/1400)!" A green mantis of about seven feet in height now stood below the massive Insect Queen, a steady wind swirling around it.

Ryoushi's eyes went wide as he realized the true power of this combo. It was an unstoppable infinite loop that allowed for infinite summons of any insect that Dolgrune wanted. _'I underestimated him!'_

"When Cyclone Mantis is summoned I can destroy a magic or trap card on your field, one per each insect in play. So I'll destroy your continuous card and your set!" The mantis swung its scythe-like claws, blades of wind shrieking out to blow apart the chosen cards, leaving Ryoushi only with his monsters as defense.

Another card shot out of Dolgrune's deck and he slapped it down onto his field. "Using my Immortal Cockroach combo I'll bring to the field my second level of royalty, Insect Princess(1900/1400)!"

A female insect appeared on the right side of the queen. This one was nowhere near as hideous as the Insect Queen was, and held a very dainty look to it, actually appearing attractive for an insect in a strange and warped way. "Immortal Cockroach combo summons Insect Knight(1900/1500)!"

Yet another monster formed, giving Dolgrune four insects total. This one was an upright insect holding a sword in one hand and a shield in the other. "The last necessary monster for this combo. Immmortal Cockroach combo lets me summon Deathscythe Mantis(2300/1600)!"

Ryoushi felt his body shaking as another massive insect emerged from within The Hive. This one was also a mantis like Cyclone Mantis, but its carapace was jet black, and its claws truly did look like massive razor sharp scythes. "Now, each of my monsters gains two hundred points from The Hive's effect."

The powers of the monsters began rising, Deathscythe Mantis to 2500, Insect Queen to 2400, Insect Princess and Insect Knight to 2100, and last but not least Cyclone Mantis to 1700. Ryoushi shuddered at facing down the army of insects. "It's not enough! My Lord of the Different Dimension is still much stronger!"

He clapped his hands over his ears as the Insect Queen shrieked a shrill sound that drove into his very brain, a terrible sound. "Insect Queen gains two hundred attack for every insect in play, including herself. She gains one thousand attack points."

The Queen's power rose to thirty-four hundred, but Ryoushi still shrugged. "Not only is it not strong enough but that worthless monster requires a tribute to attack. So if you do attack it will lose two hundred points."

"I have no intention of attacking with Insect Queen. You don't see it, but my true monster is Deathscythe Mantis. Because I can sacrifice my monsters to it at any time for it to gain those monster's attack points. Now do you understand the awesome strength of my Deathscythe Roach combo?" Ryoushi's knees hit the pavement as he stared up at the giant black mantis, which was busy devouring its fellow insects.

_'Using The Hive he can discard Immortal Cockroach to grab an insect, then return the cockroach and special summon his insect. Summoning his Deathscythe Mantis he can power up that monster's attack strength however much he wants to. I never stood a chance, did I?'_ Dolgrune's laughter was truly horrible as he pointed at Ryoushi's fallen form.

"Deathscythe Mantis(11800/1800), Reaping Scythe of the Mantis!" The heavy bladed arm slashed across Ryoushi's chest, hurling the bounty hunter a dozen feet backwards. He rolled to a stop at the back of the alley, his body bruised up. (RLP: 0)

The images faded, and Ryoushi slowly came to his feet, feeling weak and dizzy. All his years as a bounty hunter and he had never suffered such an embarrassing defeat. "You got your duel. Now what?"

The man in the sunglasses smiled and started to walk out of the alley. "Dolgrune will seek out the target you chose. At the same time the other three will scour the city for possible signs of another threat. From what I hear there were two sightings of Amarai and two duels at almost the same time. The question is, which one is him, and which is a decoy set by him? Guess we'll find out."

"And…what about me?" The man paused at the mouth of the alley, and then looked back over his shoulder. Ryoushi couldn't help but notice how sinister he looked with one half of his body in the sun and the other in the shadows of the alley.

"Good point, glad you reminded me. You four…tear his limbs off or something. I've got a bit of gardening I'd like to get done." Then he walked out into the sun, hidden from view by the glare, and then he was gone.

Ryoushi started scrambling away, until his back hit the wall at the end of the alley. His body shook with fear as the four strange masked men approached him slowly, their dark green eyes looking hard and cruel. "No…NOOOO!"

His screams were muffled quickly, and then the only sounds that came from the alley for the next few minutes were wet tearing noises. Then, with their work done, the four of them left, leaving the pieces of Dolgrune behind for who so ever happened up the alley next.

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Author's Notes: Not for the squeamish, is it?

Keiji's life had been relatively normal for a guy who ran away from home, graduated early, and lives on his own. However, all that changed when he got mistaken for a royal dragon demon. Now Keiji has found that peace is lost in his life, and reasoning has been abandoned. Now he finds himself once again in a battle for his life, but this time he's against someone -Or more appropriately, something- that makes his entire earlier matches look like a training session. Can Keiji win when his opponent isn't a petty hunter, but rather a being created for the sole purpose of ending his life?  
Next Time- Rise to Empyrean

Quick Note: Tis I, the great Wolf General-sama! I wish to remind all of you that that the chapter orders of being written go like so. This one was Seeker of the Soul, next is Time Mage, then myself, and then back to Seeker of the Soul. This is in response to Raine's reply to Time Mage's reply to his review. Chapter one was Time Mage's writing, not mine, so use the posted order to keep track of who is saying what to who. In other words Raine, that wasn't me being angry, since I don't understand anything about the Night Rangers either.

Wolf General-To Noble Paladin-Actually, If I based Rioge off of anyone it would be a guy from an anime I doubt many of you know of. The guy's name was Frowski and he was pretty cool in that odd way.


	7. The Showdown

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

This is Wolf General, and have I got a special treat in store for all of you out there. Because of the importance of this little duel, it's time for a special 'hour-long' episode of Walking Another's Path! That's right, not one but two chapters worth of dueling fun in one chapter! By the way, Time Mage is currently having difficulties writing his chapter, hence why I'm posting for now.

Walking Another's Path

Chapter 8: The Showdown; Amarai's Secret Power…Resolve Soul

"_Yeah it is…and I know just the strategy to beat you with now." Amarai drew, the card flickering gold for a moment when he drew it. "I play Side Deck Breaker. At this time both players may access their side decks and replaced cards located there with cards from their deck." Removing a small set of fifteen cards from his pocket, he took out his deck and made a few adjustments to it before replacing it. "Alright, Flash Duel preparations complete."_

_Rioge slid his deck back into place. "Yeah, I was hoping you were ready for this…now then, let's get this duel started for real."_

_They both smiled slightly, eager to test each other's ability at drawing. "Duel!"_

Rioge drew the top card of his deck. "I feel a lot better all of a sudden." His lazy demeanor was gone, replaced by a much more predatory look. "I hope you can hold against me for a while. Because here comes my Bio Gunfighter!" He threw the drawn card down onto his disk and a strange plant-like humanoid appeared on the field. (1700/1400) "I have a lot in common with this guy, and he is a pretty good method to prove my real power too. When he's summoned I can add one equipment magic card from my deck to my hand." A card slid out of his deck and he inserted it into his disk. "I play the equipment magic card Bio Pistol!"

The Bio Gunfighter sneered and yanked his own arm off, the removed limb shifting into a gun-like shape. (2100/1800)

"400 extra attack points…is that it?" Amarai was a little worried though, because he was wide open to its attack.

"Kind of, but not quite. While this guy has this weapon equipped I can make good use of his other powers, but that comes later. Since you used your turn to let me put him into my deck, I'll do you a favor and not attack. End turn." Rioge smiled darkly. "However, after this there's no holding back from me, got it?"

"Got it." Amarai drew. ("A Flash Duel isn't something I am prepared for…it's a duel where both duelists pit their spirits against each other. The supernatural energy released by both clashes so strongly that it's even more dangerous to the users than some darkness games.")

Rioge narrowed his eyes slyly. "You're getting awfully thoughtful, considering how few cards you have available to you."

"True." Amarai placed the drawn card face-down onto his disk. "I place a monster face-down on the field and end my turn." As the card appeared in front of him, he realized just how small the space they were dueling in was. ("There's so little room to move…its almost scary to think what summoning one of my Cyber Dragons would have been like had it been a darkness game.")

"Draw." Rioge looked at the drawn card. "Well well, it looks like the duel is turning into a one man show, huh?" Pointing at the set monster, he made a gun with his hand. "Bang." The Bio Gunfighter snapped up its pistol and released a spray of glowing red seeds that struck the set monster card, blowing it up upon contact.

Amarai caught a card that was spat out of his deck. "The effect of my Cyber Librarian (100/1500) is that when it's destroyed as a result of battle I can add one continuous magic card with Cyber in its title from my deck to my hand. My choice is Cyber Armory."

("A combo he's working towards?") Rioge slid the drawn card into his disk. "I'll place one card face-down on the field and then I'll end my turn."

Amarai drew and held the card up to show a smiling green jar. "Pot of Greed allows me to draw two cards." Sliding two extra cards off of his deck, he looked at both of them and nodded in agreement at his new strategy. "Without my Cyber Dragons you've greatly restricted the power of my deck, but you haven't totally sealed it."

"I didn't intend to seal your deck away. I had those cards in my deck to stop your Cyber Dragons because they would have been troublesome, and I used my Flash Draw skills to make sure I used up all of those discard and seal cards all at once before I began the real duel with you." Rioge pulled a cigarette out of nowhere, put it into his mouth, and lit the end of it with a lighter that appeared out of nowhere just as fast. "If I was aiming to truly lock you down, I would have Flash Drawn my Treasure of Slashing Life, and then used the three Time Seals, Don Zaloog, and Prohibition cards I would have drawn to end this duel without a single chance of you every getting a single turn in."

Amarai narrowed his eyes nervously. ("This guy…he speaks about those events like there is no way he wouldn't have drawn those cards.")

"Don't get it? Do you think my Flash Draw is just a fancy nickname I stuck to my drawing skills?" Taking a drag of his cigarette, Rioge blew a single puff of smoke into the air. "Come now Amarai, do I look like I'm that kind of flashy guy? My Flash Draw special ability lets me expend my energy to draw as if the gods of luck kissed my feet. Essentially, I cannot lose any duel if I felt like it, because the opponent would never get a turn in."

"What are you talking…" Amarai started to argue that fact, but froze as Rioge held an outstretched palm towards him. "Huh?"

"Exodia, Obliterate. Game." Rioge took another drag of his cigarette. "Get it? I own all kinds of cards, including the rare Exodia set. Using my Flash Draw, I could draw all five pieces of the Forbidden One on my first turn and the duel would end there. And just in case the opponent were one of those super-sneaky types who used traps or magics to stop such an effect, I'd just make my draw Absolute Victory."

Amarai had heard of Absolute Victory, which was a counter quickplay magic card created by Industrial Illusions to counter the flow of duelists who used trap cards such as Final Breath to shield themselves from defeat against instant win cards. Its ruling made it impossible to overcome, in that when activated in chain to a game-winning effect it made the opponent lose, regardless of whatever possible card effects were printed and in play. And the ruling was placed by Pegasus J. Crawford himself, which made it unable to be superseded by anyone. "Then…"

"Why don't I just run that deck and beat everybody?" Rioge took one last puff of his cigarette and then flicked it out of sight. "Because I don't give a rat's ass about winning or losing. I just want to experience a good duel, that's it. I don't use my Flash Draw normally, unless it's to set up situations where those duels would occur."

Amarai felt uneasy now, because it didn't sound like Rioge was bluffing. ("No, he's completely serious…and that's terrifying. He could, if angered, draw any card in his deck to take me down.") Looking at his hand, he felt chills run down his spine. ("I…I can't beat this kind of…")

"Stop being scared already, it ain't worth the time." Rioge sighed. "Hopeless guy, thinking just because I have that kind of power that I'd use it against you. If I wanted you beaten then I would have allowed that darkness game to occur, right? That's why I don't like you demons and your darkness games…it's just far too troublesome to be worth it."

Amarai just stood there, his eyes wide in amazement at this opponent. ("He…he's right.") Smiling slowly, he chuckled. "Rioge Mario, was it? I've never heard of you…and yet you've just earned my ultimate respect. Let's duel with our fullest skill, and not with our powers! Field magic card, Cyber Civilization!" As he closed his field magic card, the subway inside changed to a towering silver city that surrounded them. "While this field is in play, you cannot use your graveyard, cards in your hand during my turn, or your deck activation cards, if you have any!"

"Quite a restricting card you got there, huh?" Rioge smiled slightly. "However, I ain't worried too much…I still got my set card, right?"

"Right." Amarai slammed a card into his disk. "Continuous magic card, Cyber Armory!" Behind him, a giant silver structure slowly rose up into the air. "While this field magic card is in play, I can use it as long as Cyber Civilization is out to discard an equipment card from my hand to add an equipment card from my deck to my hand." Revealing a Premature Burial card, he inserted it into his graveyard and pulled his deck out of its slot. "End turn."

Rioge lifted his eyebrows a little bit. "Oh? That's it?" Drawing, he pointed right at Amarai. "Okay, then take this." The Bio Gunfighter aimed its pistol right at the dragon demon, but didn't fire. "Hm?"

Amarai smiled slowly. "From my hand, activate Pacifism Ring." A glowing golden ring appeared around the plantman's wrist. "This equipment magic card will stop your monster from attacking for this turn, and at the end of this turn it will go to the graveyard. When that happens, I can draw a card."

Rioge smiled slightly and inserted the card in his hand into his disk. "Then I'll just set this little guy face-down, go ahead." The golden ring shattered and Amarai drew. ("What a guy…he's trying to build up to some kind of combo through Topdecking…")

Amarai drew. ("What's he setting down? Why is he…") Looking at his drawn card and then the card he got from Pacifism Ring, a slight smile crossed his face. ("So…I'll use that then?") "Rioge…let me give you a little treat. I'll show you…the glowing strength of my soul."

"Glowing strength of your soul, you said? Huh?" Rioge lazily tilted his head to the side. "I must admit…now I'm curious as to what you've got."

"I play the continuous magic card Unlock Thy Soul." As the card appeared on the field, his body started to glow with calm silver light. "Also, I place one monster face-down on the field. End turn."

("Unlock Thy Soul?") Rioge drew. "I ain't making it that easy! Equipment magic card, Bio Double Shot!" Energy flowed around the body of the Bio Gunfighter. "Now my guy can attack twice, so it won't be so easy for you to hold me back with a single defender! Double Shooter!" The plantman unleashed a powerful spray of glowing red seeds that blew the set monster apart, and then pounded into Amarai's body.

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 1900

Amarai sighed and brushed himself off. "My face-down was pretty weak…just a Science Soldier (600/800) with no effect. Of course…" He drew. "It saved me." A glowing counter appeared around his Unlock Thy Soul. "Two turns to go until I can activate it, so I'll just set a card face-down on the field and end my turn."

"Still just buying time? You don't have that luxury, buddy." Rioge drew. "Bio Gunfighter, snuff him out! Double Shooter!" The monster threw up its gun and opened fire twice, Amarai disappearing within the cloud of smoke from the exploding seeds. "Is that it?"

"Nope." Amarai brushed himself off once again, that smile still on his face. "Nutrient Z raises my life points by 4000 before your first attack landed."

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 1700

Rioge closed his eyes and laughed. "What a guy…buying time until the showdown huh? Now I really need to know what you're working towards bringing out."

Amarai closed his eyes and rubbed his index finger under his nose. "Just relax and give me one more turn then." He drew and another counter appeared around Unlock Thy Soul. "Activate Cyber Defense Network!" A glowing barrier of green light sprang up between him and Rioge. "Until my next draw phase, you can't attack because Cyber Civilization is in play!"

Rioge drew. "That's good, you put me in a position where I can't attack…but, you also understand that I still have two cards I can't use yet simply because I'm already too well prepared for what may be coming. I want to see it…bring it to me. Let me see the power of your soul, this shining power you spoke of."

Amarai closed his eyes and nodded slowly. "I promised to show you it, and therefore I'll bring it out to you. Prepare yourself, Rioge!"

"Prepare myself? That ain't necessary…I'm already ready." Yawning, Rioge popped his neck a couple of times. "But please hurry…I'm getting tired of waiting."

"Sorry to make you wait, I'll make sure it's all worth it!" Amarai drew the top card off of his deck and Unlock Thy Soul had three counters around it. "Here it goes…I play the continuous magic card Counter Economics! Unlock Thy Soul transfers its counters to one card in play or it can sacrifice these three counters to let me gain 1500 life points…" The three counters of light flashed over to Counter Economics. "Behold…the shining power of my soul…" Unlock Thy Soul exploded and a silver ball of light appeared between Amarai's cupped hands. "May it awaken within my hands, Bahamut's Flare!" There was an explosion of fire as a huge silver gun covered in different ornamentations to make it look like a dragon appeared in his hand. "The Flare of Bahamut…is here."

"Oh?" Rioge lifted his eyebrows in minor amazement. "What a pretty toy…"

"Toy?" Amarai hefted the heavy weapon like it was nothing. "It's far more than that…."

"Yeah, I figured as much. Flare of Bahamut right? That's the god of the dragon demons, right?" Rioge closed his eyes and smiled. "Hmm…a gun too. How ironically perfect is that? Let the showdown begin!"

"Yeah…let the showdown begin." Amarai closed his eyes. ("Forgive me…I must use this weapon against this kind of opponent…nothing else would do.")

Rioge grinned at he felt it now…a gathering energy coming from his opponent. "You're becoming more and more powerful in such a short amount of time…what do you call this power, Amarai?"

"What do you think? It is my Resolve to beat you…my Resolve to show you the truth, and to learn who has been after me…and to restore myself to normal…all these things and more…" Slowly, he lifted the 'dragons' mouth to point right at Rioge. "Are you ready, Rioge? This power…it will not be easily pushed down!"

Rioge just kept smiling. "You keep getting me more and more excited…I can't help it…I just need to see your power in full! Show me it…all of it right now!" His hands trembled in excitement, his lazy demeanor completely gone. "Give it to me…your all…"

"So be it…Counter Economics…can be sacrificed to allow me to draw a card per counter on it!" Amarai drew three cards. "And with it, this duel is beginning now!"

Rioge smiled slightly. ("He'll need a Heavy Storm card to clear the field of my set cards for such an effective maneuver…otherwise his attack will just be negated completely and utterly.")

Amarai closed his eyes slowly. "Bahamut's Flare…my Gun Soul…is equipped to nothing at the moment, only on the field as a static card." He lifted one of the drawn cards up. "So let me give it something to equip to! Dragon Buster Armor Emergence activate!" The held up card flashed with bright light that filled the inside of the subway car. When it cleared, it revealed a humanoid suit of dragon-themed power armor standing on the field, the Flare of Bahamut in its hand. "And this is my fighter…it will use the weapon of my soul against you. Its attack and defense are equal to half of my remaining life points." (850/850) "Also, the power of my Bahamut's Flare, it gains 700 attack points." (1550/850)

Rioge smirked. "Hey now buddy, your monster doesn't have anything close to what I have in attack power on my field."

"True…" Amarai pointed at the Bio Gunfighter. "Dragon Buster, attack now with Bahamut's Flare as your weapon!" The powered armor leapt right at the Bio Gunfighter without the slightest hesitation. "Give him a triple blast." Then three large bullets of blood red energy exploded from the mouth of the weapon, hurtling towards Rioge's field like three comets.

"There's gotta be more to it than what you're showing me…" He glanced at the holographic system over the Dragon Buster's head. (2450/850) ("What?") "Reverse card open! Secret Weapons equips to my Bio Gunfighter and gives him a nice power boost of 500!" (2600/1400) "That ain't all though, it also gives him access to a new power…secret Bomb Fruit!" The plantman aimed its hollow stump where its arm had been at the approaching comets and fired out three blue fruits that slammed into each of the blasts and blew them apart. "With these Fruit Bombs, he can counterattack and destroy your monster, dealing you half of your lost monster's attack in damage. Essentially…it's pretty much the end." A trio of the glowing blue bombs exploded out of the smoke cloud and hurtled towards the Dragon Buster.

"Is that what you think or is that what you wish?" Amarai slid a card into his disk. "Go Buster Shield!" There was a flash of light as a glowing force field of emerald energy sprang up and intercepted the incoming attacks, blocking out the explosions and rocking the whole car. "This quickplay magic card negates any battle that one monster with Buster in its title enters into."

"Not a bad save, but still not enough. Take a look at your field before you argue too…because from what I see you have only one card left, while I've still got my set card and the two I'm holding, along with the single one that I'll be drawing." Rioge fanned out the two cards in his hand. "I warn ya…it won't be so easy beating me."

"I never said it…" Amarai stumbled slightly and then dropped to one knee, his entire body shaking. ("Damn…I…I got too carried away and released too much of my energy…") He looked at the handle of Bahamut's Flare and frowned at the five remaining bars of light that were on it. ("This…this isn't good…I'm too…I just can't lose here.") "I place one card face-down on the field and then I end my turn."

Rioge drew. "Hey…you alright? You're starting to look a little pale…" Pointing at the Dragon Buster, he closed his eyes slowly. "Here you go, Bio Gunfire!" The plantman opened fire on the machine monster, which shuddered as it was pummeled by glowing red seeds. "You're about to lose your soul, buddy."

"Not…now and not ever!" The Dragon Buster took the attack and was pushed back slightly by the energy. "Dragon Buster, while in attack mode, can't be destroyed as a result of battle!"

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 950

Rioge sighed. "So troublesome…but whatever you say. Alright, the turn…"

"Wait…reveal Insurance Company…" Amarai's Cyber Armory card disappeared. "This continuous trap card, once per turn, can send a magic or trap card on my field back to my hand to give me a 300 life point boost."

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 1250

Rioge chuckled. "Okay, I'm still not that impressed. End turn."

Amarai drew. "I'm not trying to impress you at all, if you haven't figured it out by now. I activate the magic card Recycle Reward! By having a machine monster on my field and at least one machine type monster in my graveyard, I can remove my graveyard from the game. I may draw one card plus an extra one for every ten cards removed." Drawing two extra cards, he looked at them both and nodded slowly. ("Okay…this isn't the time to surrender or to hold back…")

There was a moment of silence as both of them took a quick breath. They had already expended some of their energy, and neither was quite ready to call it quits. "Activate Insurance Company!" Cyber Civilization disappeared as it returned to Amarai's hand.

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 1550

Rioge took this time to get a good look at the weapon his opponent was wielding. ("Bahamut's Flare, he called it…") Looking at the silver gun, his lips quirked into a smile. ("Interesting, but not exactly terrifying kid. I hope there's more to it then just a power boost depending on the number of blasts it fires.")

Amarai looked at Bahamut's Flare five remaining lit bars. ("Five shots out of eight…I burned way too much of my spiritual energy out with those attacks from before. However…") He was already committed to this duel, so he was going to have to make sure the other five found their mark. "Secret Weapons only stopped that one attack…so take four more!"

The Dragon Buster snapped up Bahamut's Flare and fired four more shots from it. (2750/850)

"Reverse card open!" Rioge's remaining face-down card flipped up. "Crimson Breaker! This card activates when the opponent attacks my Bio Gunfighter…that attack is negated because my monster gains another 400 attack points!" (3000/1400) The plantman's hair shimmered crimson red and fired out like a spray of needles, piercing the four balls of light and blowing them all apart. "Return fire! Bomb Fruit!" Six glowing blue fruit exploded from the monster's stump and hurtled towards the Dragon Buster. "You're done!"

"Not yet!" Amarai slammed a card into his disk. "Proof of Buster activates when a monster with Buster in its title is about to be destroyed…I offer two cards from my hand to negate the attack and destroy your monster!" There was a flash of angry green light as it slammed into the Bio Gunfighter and blew it apart.

Rioge closed his eyes and sighed. "How troublesome…"

("Only…one…shot…") Amarai stumbled, his eyes going in and out of focus rapidly. ("Damn it…stop spinning world, please!") "I place one card face-down on the field and end my turn."

"You're not quite that smart, are ya?" Rioge drew. "I know what each of those bullets are, they're your body's demon energy in concentrated form. You're trading in a huge portion of your power for a boost that's barely worth it."

"Hey…I got rid of you field didn't I?" Amarai tried to play off the fact that Rioge was right about Bahamut's Flare. It required a huge hunk of his demonic energy just for a single shot, and to fully load the gun he had to nearly give it all of his energy, which once fired wouldn't come back for a while.

"Sure you did…except…" Holding up a card, Rioge smirked. "Sorry buddy, but I play Bio Invincibility. From my graveyard, one Bio Gunfighter will be returned to my hand and I can discard any number of cards to get my Bio Gunfighter support cards back…Crimson Breaker, Bio Pistol, and Secret Weapons. Plus, when Crimson Breaker returns to my hand, you take 400 points of damage!" A spray of crimson needles fell out of nowhere and tore into Amarai's body.

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 1150

Amarai stumbled. "Not…not yet!"

"Of course not yet!" Rioge slapped a card onto his disk. "Bio Gunfighter, revive yourself!" The plantman reappeared on the field. "Bio Pistol!" (2100/1400) Once again, the creature pulled off its own arm and turned the limb into a gun. "Ready?"

"I'll show you ready…bastard…" Amarai felt mad now at the fact that he was running out of energy so quickly. ("I…I can't lose here! If I can't win this kind of battle, what chance will I stand against someone like my brother?")

"Here I come, Amarai. Bio Shooter!" The Bio Gunfighter opened fire, spraying a wave of red seeds right at the Dragon Buster.

"Insurance Company…activate!" Amarai held up his face-down card. "And of course the perfect combo card, Insurance. When Insurance is returned to my hand it lets me gain 500 life points, so in combination with Insurance Company I gain 800 life points."

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 1950

"Not bad, two cards face-down and end turn." Rioge watched Amarai quietly now, wondering what the dragon demon could do with only one shot of his weapon left. He wasn't at all worried about Amarai drawing something deadly… ("The real threat is that gun, but only if he understands how to make it work…")

Amarai took a deep breath and then drew. "I place one card face-down and return it to my hand with Insurance Company." The face-down card flashed out of sight and appeared back in his hand. "It was Insurance, so I gain another 800 life points."

Rioge- 4000

Amarai- 2750

"Go Graceful Charity!" Amarai drew three cards. "Now I discard two." Sliding two cards into his graveyard, he smiled at Rioge weakly. "It looks like I'm nearly done for…huh?"

"Naw, you still got a little fight left in you." Rioge returned the smile. "However, you'd better hurry up and make that last shot count."

Amarai dropped to one knee, sweat dripping down his face. ("I'm too drained though. What can I possibly do to this kind of opponent? I might have chosen the wrong weapon, but still…") "It's too late to go back on my word now."

"Amarai…" Rioge smirked. "Come on, ya loser, give me something to be afraid of already."

"Yeah…hang on…" Amarai collapsed face-first to the ground as his body realized it was nearly drained of all its energy.

"Honestly…" Rioge sighed and lit up another cigarette, taking a seat. "I guess I have a little bit of time on my hands now. He'd better hurry though…even I ain't infinitely patient."

--------------------------

"_Amarai…" An aged man with a white beard stood a few feet away from an adolescent Amarai. "You're forcing it out too much. For your dragon's breath, it must be a relaxed thing, like breathing." Aiming his open palm out a nearby window and towards a nearby mountain, the man silently released a ball of burning energy that launched instantly into the mountainside, blowing a small crater into it. "You see…"_

_Amarai dropped to one knee, panting in exhaustion. His blasts never even made it half of the way to the mountain, and each one was so much of his energy too. "I…I can't be compared to someone like you though. Your power…"_

_The old man chuckled. "My power? Compared to yours, it's nothing at all."_

"_But you fired off five of those blasts, and I'm already exhausted after two! It's not possible for you to build up that much demon energy and…"_

_Sighing, the old man whacked the boy on top of the head with his walking stick. "What are you, stupid?"_

_Rubbing the top of his head, Amarai glared at his teacher. "Then how do I do it?"_

"_I can't tell you that, my child. You must learn it on your own, after all." The old man lifted up his hand, a ball of burning energy floating in it. "I'll give you a hint though…it has to do with color…"_

"_Color?" Amarai looked down at his hand. ("Color? What about color?")_

"_You're trying to hard to figure it out. It should be natural as the air you breath." Turning, the old man walked away without another word, leaving his student to figure the secret behind a dragon demon's breath attack to himself._

--------------------

("How…how did he do it? I never figured it out, no matter how hard I trained I couldn't increase my power beyond eight attacks, and it translates to my Bahamut's Flare.") Taking a deep breath, he stood up and tried to shake off his dizziness. ("No…I can win if I give it my all…I know I can!")

Rioge stood up and flicked his cigarette off to the side. "Are we finally done playing?"

"I…I won't play anymore…" Amarai looked at the cards in his hand. ("These are the best out of my hand cards, but what can I do with them?")

"Breath and then think. Jeez…you're such an uptight guy…" Rioge shook his head sadly. "Really, relax…"

"Everybody keeps telling me that, and they keep…" Amarai just stood there, frozen in mid-sentence. ("Wait a second…Color? The blasts were really red, but the old man's were a much lighter orange. Of course!") He smiled and took an even deeper breath. "Air. I place two cards face-down on the field. End turn." As the two cards appeared on the field, his smile got even bigger. "Make your last turn count, Rioge. I figured out what I've been doing wrong all this time, and thanks to my face-down cards…it's the end for you."

"Those are big words coming from you." Rioge decided to draw normally. ("I want to see what this guy has.") Looking at the drawn card, he chuckled and slid it into his disk. "I activate Crushing Trap! One monster in play will be completely destroyed!"

"Reveal Time Jump!" Amarai smirked. "Anything this card chains to is negated, and the turn count increases by three." He watched as Crushing Trap disappeared. "Rioge…this is it!"

"You got one shot, and it's my turn you know." Rioge pointed at the Dragon Buster. "Bio Gunfighter…blast him." The plantman snapped up its pistol and opened fire.

Amarai watched the approaching spray of glowing red seeds with a calm smile on his face. "Take a look at this…" The Dragon Buster lifted its arm to show the ammunition counter on Bahamut's Flare. It was at eight.

"You reloaded?" Rioge blinked in surprise as the eight counters got brighter and brighter. "What's going on?"

Amarai held up one finger. "During my standby phase my weapon can reload itself if I simply breathe air into its ammunition chamber. I figured it out…dragons don't breathe pure fire; they need air to propel that fire. What I was shooting before was simply heavy lumps of demon energy. They weren't effective at all. However, I just figured out that the proper mix for a dragon's attack is air and their energy, making it easy to fire multiple shots since it barely costs you anything considering how much damage you can do."

"But why are they getting brighter?" Rioge blinked at Bahamut's Flare started to shudder.

"Simple…if I have all eight counter on it during one of my standby phases…I can fire the ultimate power of Bahamut's Flare!" Amarai held up his hand, and the Dragon Buster mimicked the action. "Prepare yourself." The seeds were almost to their target. "Tenryudan!" Then the Dragon Buster pulled the trigger, and everything disappeared in a wave of flame.

Rioge felt the holographic waves pass over him, but knew immediately had they been real he would have been flash-fried instantly. As the blast cleared, he realized his field was empty. "You can fire all of the counters at once during the standby phase to destroy all cards I have in play?"

"Yup." Amarai smiled as the Dragon Buster held up the handle of Bahamut's Flare to show it at eight shots again. "Time Jump essentially makes three turns pass at once. The first turn recharged my ammunition, the second let me fire the Heaven Dragon Bullet, and the third recharged my weapon's ammunition again, since all it needs is some air and a small bit of my power."

Rioge did some quick math in his head. "Nicely done Amarai, but even if you fire off all of those shots it'll only equal 3950 total attack, not enough to…"

"Those weren't bullets, those were lumps of my demon energy…an inefficient method of shooting. In this case….I'll let you taste my weapon's real power!" Amarai drew. "For every bullet fired, Bahamut's Flare powers up the battling monster by 400 points! Rapid…Fire!" The Dragon Buster snapped up the weapon and pulled the trigger in rapid succession, spraying Rioge with blasts of demon energy mixed with air. (4750/850)

Rioge- 0

Amarai- 2750

As the field disappeared, Rioge brushed himself off and chuckled. "Not bad at all, not bad at all. You can definitely deal with anything most guys can send after you…and I'll deal with the rest."

"Huh?" Amarai's head tilted to the side slowly. "What do you mean?"

"There was no bomb and there was no threat to you from me, because I just decided that I like you Amarai Reiki." Lighting up another cigarette, Rioge took a puff from it. "Therefore, I'll travel with you and keep you on the right track. That's my way of helping you deal with your 'problem'."

Amarai face-fell. "You got my hopes up for nothing!"

"That's true, I did huh? Oh well…how about we get some dinner once this train reaches its destination?" Rioge patted the fallen dragon demon on the back. "Your treat, of course."

_To be continued…_


	8. Rise to Empyrean

Here we go again. Back to me, Time Mage, and Keiji. Sorry this took so long to get up and for any confusion it may have caused last chapter. I was having a serious block with scripting this duel, plus I had some tests/papers due for my classes. And, of course, for most of last week I was downloading the anime series, Bleach, and it takes a while to download and watch those eps, and I had to pay attention to them, since they were subbed.

**Chapter Eight- Rise to Empyrean, Pt. 1**

Hanging his head, Keiji trudged out of the final alley before reaching his apartment. He was exhausted and it was getting dark. Between getting poisoned at the start of the day, then having to face his superiors at the school, followed by giving the most loathed lecture in all the curriculum, there were limits of the human body and mind.

Rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger, Keiji grasped the doorknob of his apartments main entrance with his other hand. Too tired to actually push the door open, Keiji sluggishly collapsed against it, his weight popping it open and causing him to stumble in while trying to find his footing. Although this seemed rather crude and possibly made him appear intoxicated, Keiji's mind was simply too fatigued to care.

Dropping his bag on a lamp table in his small living room, the student teacher collapsed into a chair he had bought second hand shortly after moving into his current home. Snatching up the remote, he switched on the television, hoping it would help him to relax before he started grading the short essays one of the English teachers had given him.

Flipping through channels, Keiji groaned, his mind somewhere besides his apartment. Class had been as he had expected: brutal. Yet another class of teenagers, enraged by the idea of humans ever breeding with demons.

"What are the possible repercussions of humans and demons breeding?" That was how the discussion always started in a class, with the teacher writing it on the board.

Some students had burst into tears while he wrote it, and had to be excused. Others smirked wickedly. These were the students who enjoyed every chance to awaken conflict in the classroom if it meant they could pick on the demons. Others began to tremble with rage at the question, waiting for their chance to lash out. Yes, it was the same every time, and Keiji hated it. He hated the arrogance and ignorance of the foolish teenagers who acted only on their own passions without control.

"The only reason there are laws against it is because we aren't sure what kinds of effect that could result from the combination of species. We don't know how to take care of people who have demon blood in them from a medical perspective..." his voice trailed off as his head bent down and he nodded off to sleep.

Two hours later he awoke with a start, sweat starting to collect on the surface of his skin. He had snapped from a peculiar dream rather suddenly, and was trying to determine what had caused him to awake.

"That dream..." he muttered, resting his head in his palm while he leaned forward. Shaking his had and wiping the sweat from his forehead, he tried to remember what he could of the dream. First there had been nothing but a thick, nearly tangible darkness, then a small blue flame formed in the center of it all, similar in shape to the flame on the tip of a small candle. After a few more moments, the flame suddenly began to flicker violently, and then had erupted into a spinning column of the same sapphire flames. However, this lasted the shortest amount of time of all the images thus far, and when the pillar dissipated, a shimmering sapphire orb remained.

Then the image had pulled back, as if being watched through a camera that was zooming out. As the image drew away from Keiji, he noticed other shapes forming around the blue orb, which was now barely visible. A few seconds later, the orb was completely lost from his sight as he realized that, as his view moved backwards, he had been looking into the eye of some person who had no distinguishable features. It wasn't that they were shadowed and he simply couldn't make them out, but the figure literally had no distinct feature to begin with.

Soon Keiji's view was that of a person many feet away from the figure, who had turned ninety degrees and was facing some creature that stood a foot taller than the first figure. The creature was of a muscular build with broad shoulders, thick arms, everything. Saliva dripped from its mouth full of pointed teeth, and seconds later a sizzling sound could be heard as a tiny column of steam rose up and vanished at about the height of the creatures middle.

Despite the intimidating appearance of the demon (As Keiji has determined the creature to be), the first figure continued to stand, their posture firm and confident, yet at the same time it was relaxed, giving no sign that it felt even the slightest threat from this flesh-eater. The figure didn't even raise its arms to defend itself when the demon attacked, claws flailing.

Less than a second before the demons barbed fingers would spear into the persons chest, a blue barrier appeared around them. However, not only did the barrier stop the demon from getting any closer, but it also seemed to hurt the demon, who howled in pain, but could not keep his momentum, built from the speed of his charge and the weight of his body, from pulling him towards the figured. As the entire body of the demon collided with the shield, Keiji realized that the barrier was destroying the demon, dissolving it entirely. In just a few seconds, the beast was gone, not a single trace left.

Next, a stream of orange flames crashed into the barrier, catching the figure by surprise and seeming to overpower them, as they suddenly began to seem to be trying to resist the attack, pressing their palms against the inside of the bubble while their body trembled. After what seemed like an endless struggle, the flames vanished and the barrier dissolved and the figure fell to one knee, resting their palms on the ground. A few seconds later, they stood up, their body somehow flaring with even more power, and soon the aura had consumed all of Keiji's view, just before he had awoken.

Strangely, the dream had not frightened Keiji, nor had it given him a sense of foreboding. It had, in fact, felt almost natural, as though he were relearning about some event that he had forgotten.

"Except, it wasn't the dream that woke me up." he uttered, shaking his head a little and blinking a few times. "Because, at that same time, I had heard something sliding roughly against something else, followed by some wind. Then I saw that blue light in my dream and heard some ethereal voice say something, but what was it?"

Tapping his head, Keiji tried to remember, but seconds later realized that the front window was open a crack. More than likely he had opened it earlier to ventilate the apartment, but it was now night and he didn't want the bitter cold air to get in.

Rising to his feet, Keiji approached the window and gripped it with his finger pads and began to push, the rusted aluminum edges grinding against the metallic frame. As it slid that one inch before closing, Keiji's eyes widened in realization. He hadn't opened the window, and that was the same scratching sound that had roused him!

On instinct, Keiji leapt to his feet and whirled around, trying to find the intruder. It did not take long to find them, as he was stranding it plain sight under the doorframe to the kitchen of the apartment.

He stood slightly taller than Keiji, and seemed relatively normal. He was dressed in casual clothes, his hair was roughly combed, and he didn't show and signs on his skin of being anything but human. There were only two things out of place, as far as his appearance was concerned: he wore a surgeons mask, which was just odd, but he also had rather unusual arms and legs. All four were significantly longer than would be deemed as normal, especially since his torso and head were regularly sized, setting his entire body out of proportion.

"Who ar-"

"Keiji Saigo," the man spoke, his voice matter-of-factly as he cut Keiji off. "You've been living in this apartment for quite some time, working as a student teacher and part-time professional duelist."

"What are you doing in —" Again he was cut off by the perpetrator, his tone not changing in the slightest.

"At least, that's what your records show. However, I'm not one to trust a piece of paper, especially not one written by humans. That is, if you are a human. That's what I'm here to determine."

"Another bounty hunter?" Keiji moaned, his minds attention split between trying to figure out how this man had managed to enter his home, as well as trying to think up a plan of action. Chances were that if he fought this man, he'd lose. The elongated arms and legs would more than likely give this trespasser an advantage in combat.

"Bounty hunter? Feh!" the man spat, rolling his eyes. "My master has designate bounty hunters as nearly worthless. The only reason why we do not annihilate them is because they at least kill demons, even though they have no sense of justice in doing so."

"Then why are you here?" Keiji asked, confused. He had accepted the fact that other hunters would come with the assumption that he was the prized Amarai Reiki. However, it was rather apparent that this man wasn't after any sort of bounty. Seconds later, though, something he had read in the library triggered in his memory. "You're a demon slayer, a member of one of the Orders that seeks to purge the world of demons."

"Not exactly," the man responded. "I am the servant to such a man, however, and have been sent to investigate you."

"I am not Amarai Reiki." Keiji quickly explained, hoping he could get rid of this man without having to fight him. "If I were a demon, why would I be teaching?"

"If you were human, then why do you have such power flowing from you?" the man countered. "Why is it that you haven't made contact with any demons? According to my research, you've managed to avoid an encounter with demons with quite some ease."

"What are you talking about?" Keiji asked. He had never gone out of his way to avoid a demon. He had never encountered a demon, even by accident, to begin with.

"I watched you throughout the afternoon," the man continued. "You took a rather indirect route home, even though you didn't seem to have any engagements to attend, nor were there any kind of obstructions along the direct path." For the first time, Keiji realized that this was true. He had taken a different route home that day. He had been so tired during the walk home that he hadn't noticed the few times when he had either taken a different turn from normal, or from going straight when he would normally have turned. It had happened to him a few times before, but only on days when he was more stressed. "Every time you changed your course from what I had expected to be the norm, I checked that area and found a demon near. You were purposely avoiding them."

'_There were demons?'_ Keiji wondered, surprised by this. _'I had no idea. I've never been faced by one before.'_

"There was one time when you turned a corner and the demons there scattered, as if they feared you. That means they either sensed your energy and feared it, or they could tell who you were by your scent, and didn't want to have anything to do with a dragon demon of your caliber."

"Although you've been thorough in checking into me," Keiji responded, trying to hide as much of what h e felt and thought hidden. If he let his surprise show, then this man might misinterpret that as a confirmation of Keiji's identity. "I regret to inform you that I am purely human. I don't know what energy you're talking about, and I don't know about those demons you say I avoided, but I am positive that I am not Amarai Reiki."

"Yes, that's what you told Ryoushi Myou." Surprised by the mention of the bounty hunter who had started this whole mess, Keiji wasn't sure if he was smirking under his mask or not. "However, my master refuses to take the chance that you're just a clever demon trying to hide his tracks. That is why I have been sent here: to make sure."

And with that, the man snapped his fingers, and Keiji's heart skipped a beat. Dark tendrils were snaking out from behind the man, all connected at a point behind him that was also growing, like a blot of ink on a piece of white fabric. Out of the corner of his eye, Keiji noticed similar tendrils behind him, growing and spreading. Soon the two shadows touched, weaving together to form a single dome around the two, all traces of Keiji's apartment gone.

The intruders eyes flashed a bright green for a second before vines began to rip through the forearm portion of his left arm, slithering amongst each other like a pile of worms as they tangled. Keiji's eyes widened in surprise at this. This man's awkward body and mysterious appearance had been disturbing enough. Then the man spoke of Keiji being aware of demons all around him, while at the same time seeming to condemn the demon race. Then he had initiated this darkness game. Now he had vines extending from his wrist?

"Are you a demon?" he gasped, unable to think up any other explanation.

"Of course not." the man spat as the vines stopped moving and Keiji realized that they had taken the form of a Duel Disk, deck inserted and ready. "Demons must be eradicated, and my master commissioned me, Dolgrune, to help him with that most noble goal." (DLP:4000)

Glancing at his arm, Keiji frowned. He had left his Duel Disk in his backpack, which was currently next to the chair he had been sitting at earlier. Looking over at Dolgrune, he was about to try and explain, but the abnormally shaped man simply snapped his fingers again and a tendril of shadow extended out of the wall, Keiji's bag hanging from it. Snatching it from the arm of shadows, Keiji was surprised to see it pull back suddenly, like how one would pull back from a fire. Ignoring this, Keiji withdrew his Duel Disk from his pack and slipped it onto his arm and drew an opening hand of six cards. (KLP:4000)

"I'll start by setting two cards face down." A few feet in front of him appeared the holographic imaged of his set cards. He next chose two more cards from his deck, one which he placed on the middle-left monster zone of the device, and the second which he slipped into the magic zone under it. "Next I summon Ranger of the Night Sky (1800/1000) and equip him with Gale Bow, boosting his attack power by three hundred."

In front of Keiji and to his side slightly appeared a man in deep blue robes with waves of silver moonlight flowing through them. On his back was a short spear with a wickedly shaped spearhead made of polished steel. In his hands was a long bow and a quiver of arrows.

"Interesting opening move." Dolgrune said off-handedly as he drew. Looking over his cards, he seemed to be weighing a few options. "Now, according to what I learned from Ryoushi, I should only need to use about seventy-percent of my full abilities to defeat you. As such, I will summon Preying Mantis (1500/1200) in attack mode."

The monster was a little taller than Keiji's ranger, and appeared to be nothing except a simple preying mantis, except for his claws. Rather than the green arms that a normal mantis would use to combat, this one had a pair of metal scythe blades.

"Next I'll play the magic card, Swarming, to sacrifice my Preying Mantis and then summon tokens to my field who will all have its name, effect, and statistics until my field is full." he continued as four more mantis' appeared, each grinding their blades against each other in anticipation. However, Dolgrune obviously wasn't ready yet to unleash his attack, since he was sliding another card into his green device. "Now the continuous magic card, Might of the Swarm, which powers up every insect on my field by two hundred per insect in play. I have five, so each now gains one thousand attack points!"

Gritting his teeth, Keiji watched as each of the mantis's grew in size and their blades became jagged. Looking past them, he tried to watch their master to see if he would give anything away. _'The eyes are the window of the soul. But...This guy...I don't see anything in him?'_

"Now, Preying Mantis (2500), attack his Ranger of the Night Sky (2100)!" Pointing its face to the sky, the center mantis gave a shrill battle cry that cause Keiji to clasp his eyes in pain. Using it's long and flexible legs, the predator insect leapt into the air and arched back one of its blades, the force of its decent and of the swing enough to obliterate Keiji's monster.

Reverse card open!" Keiji shouted as his trap card revealed itself and a swirl of wind formed around the blue robed warrior for a second. When it vanished, the warrior was surrounded by a sphere covered in blades sticking out at every angle. "Sakuretsu Armor destroys one attacking monster instantly!" Unable to keep his monster from attacking, Dolgrune nodded and the attacking mantis crashed into the wall of barbs, exploding on impact like a balloon. "And now that you've lost one of your insects, all of the others lose two hundred attack points."

Shrugging, Dolgrune pointed to his next token monster. "Preying Mantis (2300), attack his Ranger of the Night Sky." Again Keiji's ears rang as the shriek filled the air before the mantis struck, using a horizontal slash to sever the ranger's head from the rest of his body. (KLP:3800) "Heh, even Ryoushi had a better counter strategy set up, and he only required me to use fifty percent of my full power to beat."

"I activate my other face down card," Keiji called, ignoring Dolgrune's mocking words. "Moonlight Silhouette activates when a Ranger is destroyed. It instantly ends your turn and allows me to place any equipment magic card into my hand from my deck."

"Ah, so that was your plan. Take out one mantis with your first trap card and weaken the rest by a small margin to reduce Life Point loss when I destroyed your Ranger of the Night Sky. Now you're safe from my other three monsters, and you will choose a large equipment magic card with which you plan to overpower my swarm." Dolgrune listed the thinking behind the move as if it were completely unimpressive. True, it hadn't done much to clear the offending field, but it had effectively saved Keiji from a truly devastating direct attack. Keeping his face calm, he drew.

"I summon Ranger of Nightfall (1800/1500) and equip him with the card I searched out, Moonlight Spear. This card raises his attack points by five hundred and allows me to once per turn discard a card to destroy one of your monsters." Keiji explained as his navy blue robed warrior appeared, hanging his small axe on a hook on his waist in order to free his hands to better handle the ivory lance that appeared in his hands. Taking a card from his hand and placing it into his graveyard, Keiji waited a second for his monster to aim the spear at one of the mantis's and fire a blast of silver light which burned a hole the size of a fist into its abdomen before it dissolved.

"The card I discarded is a magic card called Weapons Development, and when discarded I can place an equipment magic card into my hand from my deck." he explained, thumbing through his deck for a second before choosing his card, which he instantly activated. "I equip Range of Nightfall (2300) with Starbolt Crossbows, which boost his attack by three hundred and allow him to attack twice each turn."

Jamming the butt of his spear into the ground, the ranger held out his hands, a small crossbow appearing in each. "Ranger of Nightfall (2600), attack a Mantis Token (2300)!" Lifting the right arm, the outlaw pulled the trigger and a small dart sailed through the air, easily piercing the exoskeleton of the target monster. "And now your other three have lost even more attack points. Ranger of Nightfall, attack a second Mantis Token (2100)!" Pulling the trigger of the second crossbow, Keiji's monster barely had to move as a second bolt dropped another of the enemy insects, weakening the remaining two even more while Dolgrune's Life Point meter ticked down. (DLP:3200)

Drawing a fourth card, Dolgrune took only a second to plan his move as he set the drawn card in defense mode on his organic Duel Disk. "One monster in defense mode and switch my two tokens (1900 x2) to defense mode. That ends my turn."

Glancing at his new card, Keiji added it to his hand before calling for his attack. "Ranger of Nightfall, attack one of his Mantis Tokens!" Again aiming one of his crossbows, the forester launched an arrow, and another of the mantis's disappeared. "Now, attack his face down monster!" Firing from the second arbalest, the arrow shattered the face down monster, which revealed itself very shortly to be a mutant fly.

"That monster was my Flying Kamikari (1400/900), who allows me to special summon another insect with an attack power bellow fifteen hundred in attack mode." Dolgrune explained as a card ejected from his deck into his hand, which he promptly placed on the plate of vines. What appeared was an oversized red and with a bud of fire stemming out of his back like a short, round tail. "And now this is my Fire Ant (1500+400/1200)." he explained. Setting a card face down, Keiji ended his turn.

"I must admit Keiji," Dolgrune said as he drew a card. "You countered my opening play effectively and quickly. Now that you've proved that you beat Ryoushi with skill and not luck, I can take this duel more seriously."

'_He wasn't playing seriously?'_ Keiji asked himself, keeping his surprise to himself. _'He made a powerful opening play, but his second turn he hardly did anything. That must mean he'll take his game up to the same level as his opening move, but full-time.'_

"I play the magic card, Insect Army. This allows me to special summon an insect monster from my hand to the field, and tributes are reduced by one for every insect already in play. Since I have at least one insect on my side of the field, I can summon this level six monster without sacrifice: Insect Princess (1900+600/1400)"

Of all the strange insect monsters Keiji had seen in his dueling career, the one Dolgrune had just summoned was one of the more bizarre ones in his mind, and yet at the same time, one of the less repulsive ones. Significantly shorter than Dolgrune (Not that that was too unusual), she stood on two feet and looked rather human, except for the fact that her skin was green, he head was pointed with a pair of massive insect eyes, and the pair of butterfly wings on her back. Twirling on her toes, she bowed and the struck a pose.

"You Insect Princess may not have cost you any sacrifices, but I don't have any insect monsters in my deck to use to exploit her abilities." Keiji commented, even though he already knew that if Dolgrune was playing that monster that he had some way of making Keiji use insect monsters.

"I figured such would be the case, since so few people do use any insect cards." Dolgrune said, placing another card into his magic zone. "However, for one such as myself, it matters little. I have plenty of insects to supply my Princess with plenty of attack points. I play Colonial Revolution, forcing all insect monsters on the field to attack my Insect Princess, including those on my side of the field."

As he finished explaining, the ant and the mantis both turned several degrees so that they now faced their leader, who blinked a few times, but did nothing else. First to strike was the mantis, raising his sickled hands, he slashed down, but was halted when the Insect Princess began to beat her wings rapidly, releasing a pink dust which the mantis began to choke on before dissolving.

Next the Fire Ant lifted its mouth and fired a stream of fire, but the butterfly woman curled her body into a ball defensively as the flames struck, protecting her. When the flames ended she snapped her body open and released a thick cloud of the pink mist, dissolving the Fire Ant.

"And since she's destroyed two insects, my Princess will gain one thousand attack points.

But I'm not done there." Dolgrune chuckled lightly beneath his surgeons mask. "First off, whenever a Fire Ant is destroyed, you will take five hundred points of damage. Also, I can then summon another Fire Ant." From Dolgrune's graveyard fired a small ball of flames, catching Keiji in the chest. Clutching himself in pain, Keiji did not notice as Dolgrune took the card his Duel Disk had ejected form his deck and summoned it, another red ant appearing, and Keiji realized what this meant. (KLP:3300)

"And your Colonial Revolution is still in effect." he grunted, lifting his body to stand up straight again. "Meaning this Fire Ant will attack your Insect Princess, making her stronger and dealing me more damage, as well as bringing out the third for one more round of the cycle."

"Very good." Dolgrune chided as his new Fire Ant attacked his powered up Insect Princess (1900+400+1000). This time she flew straight at the ant, zipping around the flames until she reached the treacherous bug, which she destroyed by emitting some sort of ultrasonic sound.

Again Keiji was struck by a sphere of flames while the third Fire Ant appeared, which again attacked the royal insect, who opened her mouth and released a beam of pale yellow light that destroyed the bug, dealing Kieji the last bit of damage. (KLP:2300)

"Now, Insect Princess (4100)," Dolgrune spoke, lifting one of his elongated arms and pointing a finger at Keiji's monster. "Attack Ranger of Nightfall!"

"For one who's taking me seriously, Dolgrune, you underestimated my face down card." Keiji called as Dolgrune's monster fired her attack. "I activate Mirage Magic, negating the attack and raising my Life Points by your monsters attack power." (KLP:6400)

"Dammit." he heard Dolgrune spit quietly through his mask. "One card face down. Turn end."

Sighing with relief, Keiji took a moment to check his opponent, whom he could tell was berating himself for having been so careless. Although it relieved him that Dolgrune hadn't fallen into that trap on purpose, Keiji could help but feel slightly unnerved just the same. Looking into Dolgrune's eyes, he still got an eerie feeling, as if he were looking into a soulless shell. Shaking the feeling off, he drew.

"I discard one card to allow my Ranger of Nightfall destroy your Insect Princess." Keiji began, placing a card into his graveyard. Placing his crossbows on his belt, the Ranger grabbed the spear from his back and fired a burst of silver light, burning the Insect Princess away.

"I activate my face down card," Dolgrune shouted as a trap card flipped up. "Venom! This activates when you destroy an insect monster on my field. Your monster may not attack me for two turns, and at the same time you will receive five hundred points of damage. After the second turn, your monster will be destroyed and you must discard two cards from your deck."

From the trap card spewed forth a thick black liquid, its chemical composition causing the ground to steam as it ate away at everything it touched. In response to the steam, both Keiji and his monster lifted their hands to their mouths, trying to block out the fumes. Sadly, with just his hand, Keiji could only keep so much of it out, causing him to cough violently, his throat seemingly on fire. (KLP: 4900) Blinking back the tears that formed from the toxin grazing his eyes, Keiji nodded to Dolgrune, signaling the end of his turn.

Drawing, Dolgrune added the card to his hand and then chose a different one, which he laid on his monster plate. His monster was a simple bee, only much, much bigger than any real life bee, and with a massive stinger. "My Killer Needle (1200+200/1000) in attack mode and end my turn."

Drawing, Keiji wasted no time in summoning the monster from his hand to the field. His newest Ranger was dressed in blue robes that were of a moderately dark shade. "Ranger of the Twilight (1600/1200) in attack mode. Attack Killer Needle!"

Curling his right arm against his neck, Keiji's ranger fully extended his fingers, triggering a device on his wrist and a long blade extending from his wrist, much of its length running along his palm. Snapping his arm out, the blade was released and it was revealed that said blade was on the end of a long chain strapped to Ranger of the Twilight's arm that had been hidden by the sleeves on his tunic. Seconds later, the blade speared through the body of the buzzing bee, slaughtering it. (DLP: 3000)

"I set one card face down, and then I'll play my Battle Crest equipment magic card onto Ranger of Nightfall, increasing his attack points by one hundred times his level." he explained as an emblem appeared on the cape of his darker robed warrior.

"Why are you equipping your monster when he'll be destroyed at the end of your turn?" Dolgrune asked, rather puzzled by this move.

"Because, when Battle Crest is destroyed I draw until I hold four cards." Keiji explained. "And I end now." he declared as his monster went into shock, convulsing and coughing for a few minutes before melting away. Discarding two cards from his deck to the effect of Venom, Keiji then drew four cards.

"You're not the only one who can draw cards." Dolgrune called, playing his drawn card. "Insect Hatching allows me to draw one card for every insect in my graveyard. I have six, so I draw three cards." Fanning out his hand of three cards, Dolgrune seemed to smile, although Keiji could tell through the mask. "I play Butterfly Effect to special summon Insect Princess from my graveyard, empowered by half of the attack points she had gained via her own effect." In a cloud of pollen appeared the feminine insect, batting her eyelashes. "Insect Princess (2900+200/1400), attack his Ranger of the Twilight!" Raising her hands above her head, palms facing the sky, the Insect Princess began to gather energy, which she then directed at Keiji's monster

"I activate my trap card, Never Ending Night!" Keiji shouted as his trap flipped up. The blast continued and struck his monster, reducing him to a pile of ashes. (KLP:3400) "This trap card activates when you destroy a Ranger in battle and allows me to special summon another level four or lower Ranger from my deck to the field. So I summon Northstar Ranger (300/2200) in defense mode."

Sitting in a crouch with a small shield was Keiji's newest monster. He was in heavier clothing than the previous Ranger's had been, and it was colored red.

"Very well, I end my turn." Dolgrune sneered once again, and once again Keiji got that dark, ominous feeling from the seemingly empty eyes of his opponent. Drawing his card, he compared it to his other ones and set it face down, ending his turn. Drawing, Dolgrune's eyes widened and Keiji could tell by the way his muscles moved that he was smiling.

"Keiji, you've managed to effectively protect your Life Points and fight through my monster," he chuckled, taking a card from his hand and holding it separate from the others. "And so now you've proven yourself worth my going all out. So, to begin my rampage, I'll play my field magic card, The Hive!"

As Dolgrune spoke, Keiji could only bite back his anxiety. If Dolgrune was speaking the truth and had been holding back, then he was in trouble. He had been playing mostly defensively, and although he had the Life Point advantage, Dolgrune controlled the field, and this new field card may have the power to hand him the game as well.

All around them formed a dome of silken threads layered upon each other, various such threads hanging all around them and dripping with fluids. The ground beneath their feet had also been coated with a generous layer of the sickening material. Piles of eggs littered the ground, and various normal bugs crawled all around them, disappearing and reappearing in the holes that lined the walls, and Keiji was certain he felt something on his feet.

"Now it's time I began my infinite rampage. I will discover now for myself if you are indeed a human, or if you are actually Amarai trying to shake my master from your trail. If you are, then you will die. This will become your tomb, dragon. Your carcass will feed these hatchlings." he declared, motioning to the piles of eggs.

"I am an innocent man, and I refuse to die in the place of another!" Keiji shouted, but in his mind he knew the truth. His strength was wavering; the Darkness Game was beginning to take its tole on him. Combined with his fatigue, he wouldn't be able to keep up if this dragged on much longer. And if Dolgrune was indeed going to be stepping his game up, then his chances of surviving and proving his innocence were slipping away.

"If you are innocent, then blame the dragon demon; blame Amarai Reiki for bringing this curse upon you!"

_To Be Continued..._

Well, that's intense, isn't it? Next time we visit Keiji should be many times more intense, I hope, so look forward to it. Now, I'm off to take an American Heritage Test, and then it's back to work on my personal fic, Era of Souls: Guardians Eclipse.

All Ranger's and Ranger support cards are property of me, Time Mage. Of Dolgrune's cards, I think maybe two or three of them may have been real cards. The rest belong to myself and Seeker of the Soul.

Finally, a quick note to Raine Valentine, please understand that I was not trying to attack your or anything like that in my last review response to you. Thing is, all we've got are written words, so there's no tone of voice to use to judge how serious anyone is when they say something. If you felt attacked by my last note to you, I apologize.

Anyway, enjoy, and look forward to the next chapter. See ya.

_Next Time: The city of Kyoto is a city that has had demons in it. A city where humans have interacted with demons. To Juushin, a man who hates all things demonic, a city such as Kyoto must be weeded of those infected. To do so, he employs a deadly type of servant, and now he will recruit denizens of the city for the purpose of purifying it._

_See it all in, Seeds of the Sinner!_


	9. Seeds of the Sinner

Author's Note: I'm glad you guys could wait a little, and I'm happy I could get this out. I'm currently balancing a number of school papers, along with fic work, and I'm doing pretty good if I might say so myself. Which obviously I have and will continue to. Does dance of self-jubilance

**Chapter Nine: Seeds of the Sinner**

Night was beginning to drift in, so people were starting to look at him oddly. After all, the sun was beginning to set and he was still wearing his sunglasses. Yet despite their stares he walked casually down the streets of Kyoto, unperturbed. He'd experienced far worse in his lifetime than scornful stares.

_'Discrimination, inferiority, hatred, misinformation, land, power, sexual drive, religion. Many reasons that people fight others, that wars are fought. Yet I can see it in their eyes that none of these people understand that. They don't truly understand the situation at work, or the nature of war and all that comes with it.'_ He kept his face still, even though on the inside his emotions were tossing him about.

Juushin paused in his walk, standing just a handful of feet away from a man pushing an ice cream cart down the street, children crowding around him. One of the older children, obviously a teenager, seemed to be bored by the whole situation and was thumbing through a textbook. "Hurry it up little brother, you're always the last in line for this stuff, and I've got an essay for class today. Our student teacher was really bitchy today about the topic, so he gave us a long essay."

A smile graced Juushin's features for two reasons. The first was that he could see with in his mind's eye the coils of demonic energy spinning off the man serving the ice cream. The second reason was that he recognized the specific mini-textbook that the student was reading.

Without another thought Juushin strolled over to where the cart was, standing just behind the teenager. With his hands shoved in his pockets he leaned over the boy's shoulder, startling him. "And what was the topic of your essay I might add?"

The teenager, who looked to be about fourteen or fifteen with big brown eyes and bowl cut black hair, jerked away from Juushin. After a second he shoved one hand into his left pocket, his right arm tucking the book against his side. "Not like it's your business, but it's about the potential implications of demons breeding with humans. We're supposed to give our opinions on the situation and all that. So I got this textbook from the library, it's all about demons."

Juushin smiled, and though he gave the appearance of being warm and kindly, even the inexperienced teenager felt there was something off about the older man's smile. Something wrong. "I've read the book. If I might say so, the author is particularly inspired, a brilliant man. His views on the despicable nature of demons and potential breeding with humans are very important to our society. Don't you agree honorable ice cream vendor?"

The ice cream vendor, who by all appearances was a gray haired man in his fifties, jerked back a little. He knew somehow that the strange newcomer was looking directly into his eyes, even though he couldn't see the other man's. "I…have no opinion about it. I'm just an ice cream vendor, I don't know about such things."

Juushin shrugged, and then smiled back at the teenager. "You seem like an intelligent and well-informed boy for your age. How would you like to meet other people like yourself, learn a few things about the world?"

"What? Like meeting important people and hear them lecture? I can get enough lecturing from smart people like the author of this book. I don't need to meet this guy to know his views; I just have to read the book." Again Juushin just smiled, and reached out to place a hand on the teen's shoulders.

"You just met the author, boy. If you'd like to really learn more, come to the place listed on this card. I'm sure you'll find it…entertaining and educational. Trust me." The teen's eyes widened, and so did the ice cream vendor's as they realized exactly what he meant. Slowly the boy reached out his hand and accepted the card that was extended to him. He shivered as his fingers touched the older man's. The man's hands had no warmth to them at all.

"Y..yeah. Chouji, come on, we're going. And don't complain about ice cream." He grabbed his younger brother by the hand and walked away as fast as he could. He had a lot of thinking to do, and an essay to write. Not only that, but he could feel an air of danger surrounding them while they were near that man.

As soon as those two were gone around the corner, Juushin looked back up at the ice cream vendor, the calm smile still on his face. "With all these impressionable youths around sir, you really shouldn't speak like that. It frightens some of them; nothing of a violent or disturbing nature should be done around children."

Juushin nodded and reached across the ice cream cart, slapping his hand on the man's shoulders. The vendor jumped slightly, but calmed down when he realized it was just a supposedly friendly gesture. "Of course you're right; violence in front of children could be bad. We wouldn't want to…corrupt them, now would we?"

A period of near silence followed as Juushin watched the vendor carry out the orders of each of the children as slowly as possible, drawing out every second he could. Finally there was nothing more he could do, and all the children were gone, leaving just him and Juushin. "What do you want?"

"You cut me to the quick demon. I want nothing more than the complete and total eradication of every trace that the demon race ever existed upon this Earth. Is that too much to ask?" The elderly demon ground his teeth together, his canines lengthening slightly and his pupils contracting into slits.

"You're a sick disgusting man. I despise violence myself, but if I can rid the world of scum like you, then I'll do so right now." The demon raised his right arm, and his fingernails started to elongate into claws. When they were ready he began a swing at Juushin, but froze up all of a sudden, a look of panic on his face.

Juushin chuckled, his hands still casually in his pockets. "You really didn't think I was just being friendly when I patted you on the shoulder, did you? This is one of my special techniques, and a favorite of mine which involves a plant I developed. I call it the Beautiful Silent Assassin."

Through gritted teeth, the demon managed to respond. "What did you do to me? I can't move my body at all…and my arm is beginning to go completely numb."

"When I patted you on the shoulder I stealthily slipped a seed onto you, the seed of my technique. Using my own spiritual power I carefully mutated an African flower that produces a special neuro-toxin, adapting it into one that targets demons only. It'll kill a demon in an hour, but it's still not perfected. Right now I have to attach it so the seed grows the flower into the demon's body, whereas once perfected just the pollen will be enough to kill demons. It's my genetic agent to slaughter the demon race." He smirked, cocking his head to the side in the same casual manner he had been holding.

The old demon felt his muscles burning as he tried desperately to move, but the numbness was quickly spreading throughout his body. "You're disgusting. But…how is it going so fast…you said it takes an hour. You…you're bluffing!"

Instead of taking affront, Juushin just shrugged. "I told you it's a special technique of mine. Assassins kill quickly, not slowly. My new plant species, which I'm calling the Genocide Blossom, responds to my spiritual energy. Which means when in close range I can use my energy to speed up the process. Within a minute you'll be dead."

As Juushin silently watched, the old man's eyes began to bulge as the toxin reached his brain. From behind his shades he watched the flower blossoming within the man's chest, little roots lacing throughout the body. "It's a beautiful flower, the Genocide Blossom. I wish you could see it right now, it's magnificent to behold. It has the power to destroy life as we know it on this planet, except perhaps microbial life. If it weren't for my control, it could mutate and be the perfect killer for all species, since it attacks both the physical and spiritual aspects of a living being."

"You have it…don't you?" Juushin paused at these words, his smile fading away. He looked directly into the demon's eyes, and then followed the gaze. It was staring straight at the center of Juushin's own chest.

"You can tell then, is that it? You can feel it within me…the evil, raw untainted. You should feel mortified demon, knowing that this is the result. I am the result of the evil of the demon race. I am an avenger from the depths of hell! I am the death of the demon race, the incarnation of all its sins! And this…is your end." Juushin held up his right hand, and then squeezed it into a tight fist.

Immediately his spiritual energy poured into the Genocide Blossom, and its work was finished within moments. The old demon collapsed onto the ice cream cart and lay there, still. Juushin unclenched his fist, and then shoved his hands back into his pockets. _'Hmmm…Dolgrune, are you still watching that demon? Observe him until he is home, and then confront him.'_

A silent message of acknowledgment came across the bond, and then Juushin mentally severed the connection. It was easy to do so, because each of his special servants was bonded to him. "This is such a vast city as well. Hmm…I wouldn't be surprised if at least one or two of my servants were slain in this city, purging it of demons. I'll have to collect more. That means a visit to my old florist. I do hope the old lady is still in business."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hag! You still alive old lady?" Juushin stepped in through the door to a small flower shop, which displayed many beautiful flowers all over the place. They were seemingly arranged haphazardly, but Juushin knew better.

"Who's yelling like that? I'm old, not deaf you know!" The door to the back room swung open and a tiny little old woman, her face wrinkled like a prune, walked out. The teenager at the front desk looked surprised to see her come out. He also seemed slightly afraid of her, which was odd since she probably wasn't even five feet in height.

Juushin smirked upon seeing her, and leaned down to look at her more carefully. "You've dyed your hair old lady. There was more grey to it last time, and it's been twelve years. But really, I'm just surprised an old hag like you is still alive."

She stared up at him, and then kicked him in the shin, scowling. "And kicking. Shut up Kyouki, you're older than me anyways. Now, are you here for the special stock, or just to reminisce?"

"Ah, old lady you know me too well. Oh, and before we go take a look at what you've got, I just wanted you to know one thing. They call me Juushin now." Once again the old lady just stared at him for several seconds, and then turned her back on him. Finally she started walking towards the back room, shooting a scowl at her clerk, who looked curious.

"Mind the store while we're busy. And don't be nosy, or I'll make you a snack for Leslie." The clerk gulped and turned away, staring straight ahead at the door. Juushin smiled at the teenager, who immediately shivered.

Once they pushed through the door, Juushin felt a sweep of energy over his body, and then the area around them changed. Instead of a simple office like it would appear from the outside, it was a massive greenhouse, with thousands of different types of plants in a variety of shapes and colors. "Leslie's still around? I would have thought she'd have died by now, just like you old lady."

"I'm not dead Juushin, and Leslie can't die as long as my spiritual power sustains her. That and she gets a good meal occasionally. It's a pity but, these days I can't let her have anything but animal meat. Of course, I know you never approved of her original eating habits." Juushin nodded, remembering the first time he had seen the giant man-eating plant's feeding area. It had been enough to tell him that it didn't just look like a man-eating plant, but that it was one.

They continued to walk down the path, Juushin looking at the various plants as they passed by. Some of them were very interesting ones, but not quite what he was looking for. "Old lady, some of these are mine aren't they? That's very flattering."

"Don't fish for compliments Juushin, you were always better than anyone else I've met at manipulating the genetic structure of plants. Then again, you've got a bit of an advantage don't you?" She turned and tapped him on the chest, directly in the hollow between his ribs.

Juushin moved her hand away, his smile still set on, though not nearly as convincing anymore. "Yes, of course. Now, there are a number of seeds I'd like to pick up, as well as a few of your specialty. I'd like the Devotion Flower."

She stared at him, then looked aside and sighed. "Very well, I was fairly sure that was the case. You're going to recruit more of your servants aren't you?" When Juushin nodded, she began to walk, letting him follow along.

They continued their trek, stopping occasionally for Juushin to select the seeds he wanted. Eventually they stopped in front of a small row of flowers, each of them a vibrant blue color. If someone were to make a closer inspection of them they would see that the center of the flower was inverted, and seemed to go inwards forever. "I always enjoyed that little trick. To think it appears as infinity but is only a few centimeters. You're masterful at creating beautiful plants that are equally as effective. And I always loved this flower."

"Perhaps I am, but I've been making these flowers for many years now. It's second nature to me. Then again, you were able to surpass me so easily, even though you were only my student for a year. To think that was sixty years ago…" She looked rather wistful, remembering the past.

Juushin didn't respond to her, he was still busy inspecting the row of Devotion Flowers. Since he wasn't saying anything at the time, she continued to speak. "Back in those days I was in the prime of my youth, I had learned the art from my mother, the passed down tradition of our family of plant experts. Then you came in the door."

She sighed again, shaking her head to clear her thoughts. "Amazing to think that in a single year you surpassed our family's art which had taken dozens of generations to perfect. And back then, you didn't call me old lady. We were close, and now we couldn't be farther away."

Without looking at her Juushin finally spoke. "That was a long time ago. But I'm not like other people; I am eternally frozen in the past. I can't move on and reach the climax of my life until my divine retribution is complete. You knew then what you know now. I can never have a life with anyone, I cannot love. I can only hate."

With that said he stood, and looked over his shoulder. Seconds later a figure appeared by his side. It was a woman in casual street clothes, who had vibrant green eyes and a surgeon's mask over her face. Her arms were also abnormally long. "Cressa, I've got a task for you. About five blocks from here there are two bounty hunters; you'll recognize them by the way they act. Bring them to me; they'll be joining your number."

The strange woman gave him a bow, and then vanished, leaving Juushin alone with the old woman once again. "Now we wait old lady. Soon I'll have more servants. Now, tell me what you've been up to these past twelve years while you weren't dead."

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Juushin looked down at the two men in front of him, appearing extremely bored. Each of the two men were dressed in street clothes, but had a rugged look to them. The first was a blonde, and clearly American, with scruffy hair. The second was possibly European, with smooth brown hair. "Excellent work Cressa. You're one of my most effective servants."

He nudged the two men with his booted right foot, and they scrambled to their feet, looking furious at having been dragged away from their hunt. Juushin didn't want to hear them blather, so he chose to forestall them. "You two were hunting for the demon Amarai, correct?"

They nodded, looking a bit nervous under his strange gaze. With those shades on they couldn't tell where he was looking. "Good. The way you go about it, doing it for money, annoys me. So I'm just going to put you to the same task in my manner, by using your flesh and your souls to create perfectly obedient servants like Cressa here. Don't worry, you won't die, you'll just become something new."

The two bounty hunters looked a little panicked, most likely because of how bored Juushin seemed when talking about it, and how easily Cressa had captured them. Against one of his servants as powerful as Cressa, those two were nothing. "Cressa, hold them down so I can begin the process."

The blonde gulped, backing away from the freaky woman. "No way you freak job! We're not becoming anything for you! I'm Gene Moores, a famous bounty hunter, and I don't bow to any wacko!"

Juushin looked over at the brunette, who nodded furiously as well. "And I'm Alec Saursen, another master bounty hunter. I too would never bow to any person like you. I'd sooner work for a demon who could pay me than work for some weirdo who wears sunglasses at night and wants to mutate us or some crap like that!"

The moment he said those words the old lady sighed and looked away. At the same time Cressa drifted back away from them, seeing the tell-tale signs of Juushin's anger. His jaw was tightening up. "You would…consort with demons?"

Both bounty hunters exchanged looks, recognizing that somehow they had gotten in deep. But if they were already there, they might as well run with it. So Gene raised his clenched right fist and made his declaration. "That's right! I'd crush anyone in my way for any employer as long as they pay! And freaks like you aren't up my alley!"

"You would willingly consort with demons…merely for pay? You are disgraces! I'll purge you in the darkness and resurrect you as my puppets, weapons for my war against the demon race! Prepare yourself!" The bounty hunters were sent flying back as his spiritual power flared up, and a duel disk of vines formed on his arm. (JLP: 4000)

As waves of beyond black smoke rolled out around their feet both bounty hunters knew that they had little choice. So at the same time they raised their duel disks and drew their first hands, the blonde Gene drawing six. "Fine, we'll take this as a chance to escape from you, freak job!" (GLP: 4000)

He snagged one of his six cards and laid it down carefully onto his duel disk. A horizontal holographic image of a card was created, and then another card appeared in a vertical position behind it. "A monster and a magic or trap. Two against one…easy as pie, right Alec?"

The brunette nodded, certain that the game was already in the bag. After all, each of them was highly talented at both dueling and hunting. So in a two against one there was no way they'd lose. "I summon Goblin Attack Force(2300/0) and set one card face down!" (ALP: 4000)

A group of ragged looking green-skinned men gathered together in front of Alec, lounging around and looking supremely bored. One of them was even picking his nose. "Against two duelists, one duelist can't win. No matter what move you make it won't help."

Juushin didn't respond vocally, instead he drew his opening hand of six cards. "Against weeds like you, I knew just which deck to use. Flame Weed(600/700) in defense mode!"

The ground in front of his feet shook, and then a fiery tendril shot up and out, curling into a vague plant-shape. Gene looked at the monster carefully, not sure what to make of it. "A burning…plant? You're really going to fight us with a plant deck? Everybody knows that's one of the weakest deck types out there!"

"I set two cards face down. Take your turn weed, and don't mock these weeds. They're of a higher caliber than you and your friend." He stood there casually, his left arm held up, cards in hand, while his right arm hung at his side.

Gene drew, and threw the monster down immediately. "Tribe-Infecting Virus(1600/1000), the ultimate anti-theme monster! This pesky virus lets me discard a card from my hand…" He slid one of his cards into the grave.

"Then I can name any sub-type of monster, and all of those types in play are destroyed! I call plant, and send your stupid weed to the grave!" Gene's sickening mucus-like monster sprayed some sort of ichor onto the weed. The flames struggled against it, but soon the entire plant melted away.

"See, not a thing you could do! Tribe-Infecting Virus, attack that freak job directly!" The virus compacted its body, and then fired off another volley of the disgusting slime that it had used against Flame Weed. This time however it was aimed directly for Juushin.

"Open face down card, Rot! This trap cards reduces the attack of all attack mode opposing monsters by one hundred times their level and prevents them from attacking." The slime splattered harmlessly on the ground as the virus itself shrank back, its attack points falling to twelve hundred. At the same time the goblins' skin paled slightly, their attack points dropping to nineteen hundred.

Gene's left eye twitched, not happy that his attempt for a direct attack had failed. Not only that, but his partner's monster wouldn't be able to attack either. "Fine, I end my turn."

Alec drew, and to his horror the goblins weakened even further, one of them completely collapsing. "They…lose that attack power each turn?" Juushin nodded, confirming Alec's suspicion.

"That's just fine with me! Continuous magic card, Frontline Base! This card lets me once per turn special summon a level four or lower union monster to the field. And I special summon Second Goblin(100/100)!" A tiny little green skinned monster struggled out onto the field, looking weaker than a day old kitten.

"Now I normal summon the brutish Giant Orc(2200/0), and equip Second Goblin to him! Since Second Goblin is unioned to Giant Orc I can once per turn forcefully change Giant Orc's position. That eliminates the drawback he shares in common with Goblin Attack Force!" A massive dark skinned beast stomped out, a club in one hand. Then it reached out with one hand and placed the little goblin on its back.

"Giant Orc, attack him directly!" The beast roared, charging in with club held overhead. Juushin looked up at the oncoming monster with a bored expression on his face, and without him making a move his set card flipped up.

"Weakening Drought negates your attack and drains two hundred attack from your monster per level. That amount is then added to my life points." A strange mist fell around Giant Orc, and the monster stumbled backwards, coughing as it was weakened. (JLP: 4800)

As Alec finished his unproductive turn, the old lady looked on, with the bored Cressa beside her. "It seems he's just as good as ever. These two never stood a chance, particularly if his skills have improved in the past twelve years, which I don't doubt."

Juushin snapped his fingers, and the burning weed from before popped back out of its former hole. "During your end phase I use Flame Weed's special ability to special summon it from the cemetery. It returns in defense mode."

Once it was in play he drew, and the weed's body shook violently. Three balls of fire flew off of it, one striking each duelist. "During my standby phase Flame Weed deals five hundred damage to each player." (JLP: 4300, GLP: 3500, ALP: 3500)

"I summon Bone Weed(1700/1200) in attack mode." A five foot tall plant uncurled from the ground next to Flame Weed, its shape just like a normal plant with five leaves, but it appeared to be made of pure white bone.

The shade wearing duelist raised his hand and pointed at Gene's set monster, and Bone Weed's body tilted to face it. "Bone Weed, obliterate that set monster." The weed swung its stalk in a downwards arc, sending shards of bone flying at the set monster.

In seconds the monster splattered, and then two purple spheres with hairs on them appeared on Gene's field. "You destroyed Giant Germ, which deals you five hundred damage and lets me special summon two more." (JLP: 3800)

Gene smirked and pointed to his set card, which immediately flipped up. It was a trap showing a bunch of spores floating in a reddish background. "Not only that, but you've triggered my deadly trap card, Deck Destruction Virus of Death! Now all monsters on your field, in your hand, and in your deck with fifteen hundred or more attack are sent to the grave!"

Bone Weed faded away, and Juushin thumbed through his deck, finally selected all of the cards that fit into the category. To both Gene and Alec's surprise the number of cards was very small. "That doesn't set me back; counting Bone Weed this deck only has seven monsters that fit that requirement."

"You act so cocky, but we've still got you at a disadvantage. If all your monsters are weaklings, which isn't surprising in a plant deck, then you've got no way to win!" Juushin just stared right back at him and then extended his right arm, palm outstretched.

"When Bone Weed is destroyed, all monsters are destroyed. Say goodbye to your gathered efforts." A barrage of bone shards came flying out of the ground, piercing into all of the enemy monsters.

Once the barrage was over, only one monster was still on the field, and that was Giant Orc. "When a monster with a union monster equipped to it would be destroyed the union monster dies in its place. So my monster remains."

Juushin didn't respond at all. Instead he slid one of his three remaining cards into his duel disk. "End turn."

Gene's eye twitching finished as he snatched up the top card of his deck. "You won't get away with trying to make sport of us! Virus Cannon(1800/200) in attack mode! This machine generates viruses by having me discard cards from my hand. For each I discard you have to send a monster from your deck to the grave!"

He slipped one of three cards in hand into the grave, and the giant blocky machine shot a needle out at Juushin. The demon exterminator caught it between two fingers, and then tossed it aside. "Very well, I send a monster to my grave."

"I activate the continuous magic card Viral Genome. Then, Virus Cannon will attack you directly!" The machine fired off another dart, but instead of going directly at Juushin, a new monster appeared on the duelist's field. It was a brown and dying weed, tears in its leaves.

"I special summon Rot Weed(0/500) in defense mode. Since the number of monsters on my field has changed you have the right of recall. Will you take it?" Juushin's answer came as the dart continued on its path, striking Rot Weed dead on. The weed shook, and then crumbled into dust.

"That was your mistake. When Rot Weed is destroyed in battle it takes the destroyer with it, dealing half that monster's attack as damage to the controller's life points. Say farewell to your monster." The machine exploded, fire licking at Gene's skin. (GLP: 2600)

The bounty hunter growled in the back of his throat, furious at his own mistake. "You keep acting superior, but we'll break through your defenses sooner or later, and then you're finished!"

Alec snapped his drawn card around, showing the ankh that was familiar to all duelists. "Monster Reborn raises Goblin Attack Force(2300/0) from the grave! And I'll summon out Goblin Tasker(400/100) which unions to my attack force, working like Second Goblin!"

A shorter goblin with a whip in hand appeared, snapping the whip out at the lazy goblins. They immediately scrambled upright, snapping to attention. "Goblin Attack Force, attack this jerk with your Rampaging Brutality Attack!"

All dozen of the goblins came for Juushin head on, their many and varied weapons all at the ready to pummel Juushin within an inch of his life. "Using its special ability I revive Nightmare Weed(3000/3000) from the graveyard to the field."

The rampaging goblins came sliding to a stop as a huge shape burst out of the ground. It looked like a normal plant, but black lines snacked up its body, and instead of normal leaves, the leaves on the weed had wide eyes. Big eyes on every leaf, all of them staring at the goblins or the two hunters.

Alec gulped, and the goblins back away. "I…see. The special ability of all your weed monsters is that the can be special summoned from the grave. But it's only once isn't it?"

"You catch on quicker than many of my other opponents have, but ultimately that won't save you. Like regular weeds all of my weeds return even after being destroyed. Against such a force, can you possibly win?" The bounty hunters gulped, not quite as sure of themselves anymore.

"I…switch Giant Orc into defense mode. End turn…" He gulped, looking over at Gene for reassurance. But he got none, as his partner looked just as worried as he was. Bit by bit they were becoming worried by this freaky man who had gotten them into this mess.

Juushin drew, but whether he looked at the card they couldn't tell thanks to his shades. "It's time to purge you in this darkness, just as I promised. You have been instruments of your own defeat by sending my weeds to the grave. Now, they will rise to destroy you!"

He snapped his fingers, and one by one new weeds rose onto the field. The first was the same weed he had brought out earlier, the Bone Weed(1700/1200). The second was a weed with a reddish tint and black thorns poking out of it, and long vine-like arms that were also barbed by those dangerous looking black thorns. "This is Hell Weed(2400/700)."

The third one was even bigger than Nightmare Weed, with its vines and stem thick, and lined with what looked like veins bulging out. "This one is Weed of Might(2800/2500)."

Last but not least of them was a simple looking but tall weed with three petals for a head, and extending out of the sides were two ropy vines. The vines ended with big bulges that looked slightly like clenched fists. "And lastly is Brute Weed(2400/1900)."

Finally Juushin made another move, holding up one of the three cards in his hand. "Weed Lynching shuts down all magic and trap cards on my opponent's field for the duration of the turn. There will be no defending yourselves from the end."

"Weed of Might, attack Goblin Attack Force." The massive bulging vines of the weed swung out, slamming into the goblins. They were forced to the side, and the Goblin Tasker took the hit heavily, and was flattened. (ALP: 3000)

"Hell Weed, finish it off!" The demon-like weed's body shivered, and the black thorns launched out, one driving into the chest of each goblin. They screamed, and then shattered into digital pixels. (ALP: 2400)

"When Hell Weed battles the opponent, it deals five hundred damage no matter what else happens. Now, Bone Weed will destroy Giant Orc." Alec fell to his knees in despair as his final defense was broken down by a wave of bone splinters from the weed monster.

"Brute Weed, finish him off!" One of those studded vines shot out, striking Alec in the face exactly like a fist would. He was sent flying backwards, blood spraying out of his crushed nose. And as Gene watched, he knew he was next. (ALP: 0)

Looking at the terrifying form of Nightmare Weed, Gene could only imagine the horrible things that would happen if it attacked him directly. There was no way he was going to go through that if he didn't have to. "I…surrender." (G: FORFEIT)

The monsters faded from the field, and Juushin's vine duel disk retracted into his arm. He stalked forwards, and with a single gesture of a hand Cressa was by their side, forcing them to their feet. "You lost, just as I declared. And now you will become like Cressa and the rest of my servants. You will become Seed Puppets, your bodies and souls going into the process of creating a perfectly obedient demon hunting servant."

They could only stare at him, looking terrified out of their wits. Cressa ripped their shirts open, holding them steady as Juushin held up two Devotion Flowers and two seeds that he had selected. He placed them against the men's chests with his palms, and began to focus, his own energy pouring into those.

He ignored the screams of pain from the two men as the flowers and seeds dug into their chests, going deeper and deeper to be bonded by the soul, one of the core ingredients. "No need to worry, your souls will be filtered out, they merely become the bonding agent. You will be perfect assassins, unable to feel pain and completely obedient. Far superior to your pathetic states as you are now."

As the two bounty hunters trembled under the pain inflicted by the bonding process, he pulled up his own shirt. There in the center of his chest was a puckered scar, and surrounding it going in a spiral pattern were strange archaic symbols that neither hunter recognized. "The primary aspect that makes you as you are, seeds I forge from within me. Spiritual fragments of the legendary Seed of the Sinner."

The puckered scar was forced open as two tiny pitch black seeds came out, and Juushin took them up. He dropped his shirt and then shoved the seeds into the two men's chests. They no longer struggled as the Devotion Flower bound them too tightly for that. Now they simply accepted it as the process began to overtake them.

Their arms lengthened, making room for the vines and roots of the seeds that Juushin had implanted in their bodies. At the same time their jaws were tightening up, turning into a dark brown like that of a tree trunk. Their eyes also changed color, becoming vibrant green. At last it was over, and they drooped forwards. "Take these, you'll need them to blend into a crowd at all."

He dropped two surgeon's masks at their feet, and then turned away. "Cressa, give them the information needed to report to the two other agents in this city. Inform them that they won't be needed. I'm going to oversee Dolgrune's efforts."

Without another word he walked away from them, stopping in front of the old woman, who he looked down at briefly. "Thank you for help old lady. It was a pleasure to see you again. It may be a while before we see each other again. Don't die in that time old lady."

He walked back out through the door, pausing only to smirk at the terrified teenage clerk, and then he was on his way. As he walked out the door, the old woman followed part-way, standing at the threshold to her special greenhouse. "Don't you die either…Seijou."

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Author's Notes: Shock and awe…or something like that.

_Amarai can no longer hide. Even though he now had Rioge, the apparent invincible duelist, on his side, he knows that there are numerous different groups after him for his power/knowledge, etc. This is the time to fight back, and show them that he refuses to be prey, not when he can fight._

Next Chapter by Wolf General: A stand against your hunters.


	10. A stand against your hunters

Disclaimer: No I don't own Yugioh. And it's me, Wolf General, with another chapter of great fun.

Between Black and White

Chapter 10: A stand against your hunters

"Hey bartender, another round of drinks for the house!" Rioge tipped up his glass and the entire bar cheered once more. "That's right guys, drink to your heart's content! It's all on my dear and best friend, Amarai! Three cheers for the guy!" Another hearty cheer came up from all around them.

Amarai glared at Rioge, and then sighed helplessly. "Just put it on my tab, bartender." He couldn't believe this crap. It wasn't like the money he was spending meant anything to him. What got him angry was the fact that he had to remain nearby Rioge in case he suddenly blacked out. ("I hate it…I thought he could save me from such a horrible fate, but instead I just find myself spending money so he can get dead drunk, and I'm not making any progress towards my goal while it is happening.")

The bartender placed the phone receiver behind the bar back into place and looked over at Amarai. "Hey buddy, I just got a call from your brother. He said he's waiting for you outside."

Amarai froze up, and suddenly Rioge seemed oddly sober.

------------------------------------

Amarai slowly stepped outside, and then proceeded down the alley on the right side of the bar. ("If it is him, then he wouldn't meet me in public.") Sure enough, there was someone waiting for him in the darkness of the alley. "So, is it really you?"

The shadowed form shifted slightly.

Amarai frowned slightly and lifted up his hand to look at the item that had been thrown at his face. "You're obviously not my brother. He knows about the Flash techniques, so he would know that I could block whatever this is." Glancing at the tiny thorn that had been thrown at him, he dropped it to the ground and stomped on it. "So, what's the deal? Are you just an assassin from those same…"

"Assassin?" The voice was oddly quiet and relaxed, as if it had expected that thorn to be stopped. "Assassins kill for their own greedy purposes. My purpose is to bring you to my master, and whether it is dead or alive is now your choice, demon."

Amarai's eyes flashed, and he brushed some of his overgrown silver hair back. "You know what…I'm sick and tired of running from you guys. Let me show you something…"

"Nothing you have could possibly catch me by…" The shadowed figure stopped in mid-sentence as it found itself staring at a toothed barrel. "What…"

Amarai calmly locked his eyes onto the assassin's body and made sure his finger was tightened onto the trigger of Bahamut's Flare. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you, so begone before I make sure there isn't a body for the police to identify."

"I don't think so…foolish demon." The shadowed form took a single step forward.

"Your mistake." Amarai pulled the trigger…and nothing happened. "Huh?" Tilting the weapon so he could see its handle, his eyes widened at the fact that the counter was empty. ("Out of shots?") He relaxed his muscles and started to breathe in, but nothing happened to the handle counter.

"There's no point. That thorn was coated with an effective poison that locks up demonic energy sources. Whatever that gun was supposed to do has been negated." The shadowed form stepped into the barely dim light, its form seeming to be more or less human. "Now then…"

There was a click noise of a gun's hammer being cocked. "Now that's not very sportsman-like." Rioge stepped into the alley from behind the shadowed form. "Don't move, if you please."

Amarai knew that they had won. Despite the fact that his demonic energy was apparently on lockdown for now, he knew that Rioge had the necessary spiritual strength that he could destroy this guy in an instant. But he felt it… ("My brother…") "Rioge…make sure he doesn't run."

"Not a problem at all…" Rioge twirled the revolver he was holding on one finger, yawning tiredly. "So anyway, what should we do with him?"

"He's going to tell us who his master is and where we can go to find him, because otherwise he's going to die." Amarai stepped forward, his eyes locked onto his would-be assailant. "Don't count us unprepared just because your master thinks himself some kind of highly intelligent person. Believe it or not, Rioge and I are pretty quick to react in a clever way."

"I wouldn't tell you such a thing, I have no reason to. My death is unimportant…" The dark form started to prepare itself to retreat. If it was destroyed in the process than so be it.

Amarai's mind flashed with another image of his brother. "You'll duel me. If I win then you'll tell me what I want to know. If you win…I'll come with you to your master."

"Amarai, are you sure you want to…" Rioge instantly realized that look in his 'employer's' eyes. "So troublesome…alright, go ahead. I won't interfere."

"I assume you know how to duel, right?" Amarai's duel disk appeared out of thin air and he slid his deck into place. "Otherwise, this will be a pointless fight."

"I know how to duel…and I'll bring you to my master." The shadowed form's arm twisted slightly and suddenly it had a duel disk. "Very well, I accept your challenge. Let the darkness emerge…"

Amarai gave Rioge a confident smile right before the darkness orb sprang to life around them. "Do you mind telling me your name?"

"Not at all. My name is Arum, remember it well." Then he drew five cards off of his deck. "I will begin."

Arum- 4000

Amarai- 4000

Arum drew. "A good start to your destruction. I place one monster face-down on the field and end my turn." A face-down monster card appeared on the field in front of him.

Amarai drew. "You're underestimating the power of my deck already. Cyber Dragon's special ability lets me special summon it if you have a monster in play and I have none!" (2100/1600) A metallic serpent-like dragon appeared on the field and roared. "Evolution Burst, burn that set monster to ash!" The monster sprayed the set monster with flame and it evaporated. "I place one card face-down on the field and end my turn." A single face-down card appeared right behind his Cyber Dragon.

Arum drew. "You can't expect me to not know about your deck, fool. The monster you sent to the graveyard is Mushroom Beast. Its special ability lets me send the top three cards of my deck to my graveyard at any time, once per game." Pulling the top three cards off of his deck, the shadowed form slid them into the graveyard. "Now I play Trap Booster. This quickplay magic card lets me discard a card from my hand to activate a trap card from my hand."

"A trap card?" Amarai frowned slightly. "That's quite a high cost just to play a trap card right now."

"Don't worry about my strategy, demon." Arum discarded a single card and inserted another card into his disk. "I activate Destiny Destroy! This card allows me to send five cards from my deck to my graveyard. So I choose these five…" He held up five monster cards and slid them all into the graveyard. "And now my strategy is nearing completion. I place two cards face-down on the field and end my turn." Two more cards shimmered into existence in front of him.

Amarai didn't like this at all. ("He's dropping cards into his graveyard for something, but whatever it is…") He drew. Looking at the drawn card, he smiled and held it up. "First, I play Pot of Greed." Drawing two cards, he fanned them both out and then he looked up at Arum. "Field magic, Cyber Civilization!" All around them huge futuristic skyscrapers exploded to life, dissolving the darkness that was their background. "All Cyber monsters in play gain 200 attack and defense points, and you cannot activate cards in your graveyard, from your deck, or from your hand." (2300/1800)

Arum chuckled strangely. "You actually think that's my strategy? Foolish demon…"

"I never said such a thing, did I?" Amarai held up another card. "Magic card activate, Mirror Head Attachment!" The head of the Cyber Dragon was replaced by an almost crystal-like head that glittered in the lights of the Cyber Civilization. "It's already over, go Cyber Dragon, direct attack!" The metal dragon roared and released a powerful blast of fire that hurtled towards Arum.

"Reveal Creeping Mold! This trap allows me to destroy your monster if I have at least three monsters in my graveyard!" Arum spoke calmly, not afraid at all. This duel was his to win, since Amarai's demonic energy was currently sealed up. A wave of green slime exploded from the trap card and swallowed up the Cyber Dragon. "You got too cocky." Then he gasped as the slime shuddered and exploded into dust, revealing the Cyber Dragon. "What happened?"

Amarai chuckled. "I think you're underestimating me again. Mirror Head Attachment activates when the equipped monster is targeted by an enemy's trap. I can send it to the graveyard to negate that trap and destroy it."

Arum returned the chuckle. "That means your dragon is finished, as I reveal my Doom Blossom trap card!" The other face-down card flipped up. "This card destroys your monster if I have at least three plant monsters in my graveyard, and then you take half that monster's attack points in damage. Therefore, suffer for your insolence against my master's plan!"

"You talk too much." Amarai's face-down card flipped up. "Cyber Xerox's special ability allows me to copy one card you have used since the last turn! And my choice is Trap Booster!" Taking a card from his hand, the dragon demon discarded it into his graveyard. "By discarding a card, I can activate a trap from my hand! Go Cyber Mine Detector!" Doom Blossom exploded into dust. "This trap card triggers in response to another trap card from your field. During this turn, all your trap cards are negated and destroyed if I have a Cyber monster in play along with Cyber Civilization!" The Cyber Dragon unloaded a blazing ball of fire onto Arum.

Arum- 1700

Amarai- 4000

Arum grunted as the fire died down. "So it's true…you are just as powerful as I had thought, if not more so. No wonder there are so many factions after you."

Amarai narrowed his eyes. "End turn."

"However…" Arum drew. "I'm far from done! Now it is time to reveal my strategy to you, Amarai Reiki!" His field magic card slot opened. "Field magic, The Lost Paradise!" All around them the city exploded, replaced by a barren wasteland. "While this field magic card is in play, I may draw two cards once per turn." Sliding two cards off of his deck, Arum slid one into his disk. "Now I trigger Pot of Greed to draw two cards." Adding two more to his hand, he inserted another card into the disk slot. "Research on the Pot of Greed is a magic card that allows me to draw two cards if used during the same turn as Pot of Greed." Fanning out his five card hand, he nodded. "Yes, this is the strategy that will crush your chances of winning."

"Is that so?" Amarai smiled confidently. "Bring it on."

"As you wish! I activate the magic card Paradise Revived!" All around them a golden light filled the air. "By discarding a card from my hand and sending The Lost Paradise to the graveyard, I can activate a special field magic card from my hand!" Huge trees and holy music replaced the dreary settings of the wasteland. "Welcome to Gaia Paradise."

"Gaia…Paradise?" Amarai looked around him in amazement. "Very beautiful, but is there a point to it all?"

"Of course." Arum placed a card onto his disk. "Come out, my Holy Caretaker!" (0/1300) An old man wearing brown robes appeared on the field. "This monster's special ability lets me sacrifice it while Gaia's Paradise is in play to discard a card from my hand, and in return I may draw four cards." Sliding his monster and his hand card into the graveyard, he drew four new cards. "Now then, Amarai…let us bring this duel to its next level. I play Smashing Ground to dispose of your Cyber Dragon!" A giant fissure opened in the ground and swallowed up the machine monster. "Your time draws to a close already, Amarai Reiki. I place a single card face-down on the field and then I end my turn."

Amarai drew. "This coming from the guy with no monsters on his field and 1700 life points left." Holding up the drawn card, he smiled calmly. "Let me show you something special. Graceful Charity lets me draw three cards and then discard two." Sliding three cards off of his deck, he dropped two of them into his graveyard slot. "Ready, I activate Polymerization!" A swirling vortex appeared in the sky above him. "Now, from my hand, I play Cybernetic Fusion Support! At the cost of half my life, I can remove fusion component monsters in my graveyard from the game to fuse!" His graveyard whined and spat out three cards. "I remove my three graveyard Cyber Dragons from the graveyard to special summon their ultimate fusion!"

Arum- 1700

Amarai- 2000

"Cyber End Dragon, huh?" Arum wasn't impressed by these tactics. "A big monster like that won't mean a single thing to my strategy."

"That's true…if my intent was to bring out Cyber End Dragon! Come out now, Cyber Behemoth Dragon!" (2600/2300) A giant composite of the three removed Cyber Dragons appeared on the field and roared loudly, the sound shaking the trees of the paradise wildly.

"You removed your three Cyber Dragons for that weakling? It won't be enough…"

"Just wait and see." Amarai held up one hand. "Behold the power of my dragon! Once per turn I can remove one magic or trap card in play from the game!" The face-down card on Arum's field faded away. "Direct attack, Cyber Elimination Burst!" The giant dragon let out a deafening roar and released a blast of concentrated green plasma towards Arum. It washed over the still concealed duelist like a tidal wave.

Arum- 100

Amarai- 2000

"Your life points…" Amarai looked completely surprised.

"Don't be so surprised, Reiki." Arum didn't seem that injured from the force of the blast. "Gaia Paradise allows me to discard one card from my hand when you attack me to raise my life points by 1000 before the attack hits."

Amarai calmed down, it could have been a much worse effect. "End turn."

Arum drew. "And now it comes for you…Gaia Paradise lets me discard two cards from my hand to draw five, once per turn." He did so, and then placed a card onto his disk. "Now, I play my ultimate killing maneuver. By removing eight plant monsters from my graveyard, I can special summon this creature…" There was a blast of light as a golden form lowered onto the field. "Embodiment of Gaia (?) is summoned. For every card in my graveyard its attack and defense points are equal to 200 times that number." (3400/3400) "Now I play Paradise Light! This card equips to my Embodiment of Gaia!" The light around the unseeable form grew brighter. "Burning Light of Creation!"

The Cyber Behemoth Dragon roared in pain and them exploded into dust.

Arum's shadowed form slowly came into view, revealing an almost humanoid form. The only thing breaking the image of an ordinary human in street clothing was the surgeon's mask he wore and the fact that his arms and legs were longer than they should have been. "Embodiment of Gaia, when equipped with Paradise Light, gives me life points equal the monster it destroys in battle."

Arum- 2700

Amarai- 1200

Amarai felt his body shaking in the face of this burning light. ("It's so hot…but that shouldn't affect me…")

"The poison in your system is a powerful, yet only one time useful chemical used by master and his servants. You see, it will seal away your demonic power temporarily, leaving you as weak as any other human. It only can work on one target once, because after their body becomes immune to it. However, this one time will be enough. Without your demonic power, how do you intend to stand against me in a darkness game, Amarai Reiki?"

As his mind reeled from the burning light of the Embodiment of Gaia, Amarai couldn't think of any kind of answer to that question. Without his demonic power, could he win this kind of duel?

_To be continued…_

Keiji is locked in a Darkness Game with one of Juushin's deadly Seed Puppets,

and it's not looking good for him. Without demon energy and without knowledge of

what exactly he's up against, how can he fight back, especially now that

Dolgrune's trump card, The Hive, is in play?


	11. Rise to Empyrean Pt 2

Here we go again. Back to me, Time Mage, and Keiji. Not much else to say other than that you may want to grab some popcorn and your favorite beverage, because you won't want to get interrupted during this chapter!

**Chapter Eleven-Rise to Empyrean Pt. 2**

"_Keiji, you've managed to effectively protect your Life Points and fight through my monster," he chuckled, taking a card from his hand and holding it separate from the others. "And so now you've proven yourself worth my going all out. So, to begin my rampage, I'll play my field magic card, The Hive!"_

_As Dolgrune spoke, Keiji could only bite back his anxiety. If Dolgrune was speaking the truth and had been holding back, then he was in trouble. He had been playing mostly _

_defensively, and although he had the Life Point advantage, Dolgrune controlled the field, and this new field card may have the power to hand him the game as well._

_All around them formed a dome of silken threads layered upon each other, various such threads hanging all around them and dripping with fluids. The ground beneath their feet had also been coated with a generous layer of the sickening material. Piles of eggs littered the ground, and various normal bugs crawled all around them, disappearing and reappearing in the holes that lined the walls, and Keiji was certain he felt something on his feet._

"_Now it's time I began my infinite rampage. I will discover now for myself if you are indeed a human, or if you are actually Amarai trying to shake my master from your trail. If you are, then you will die. This will become your tomb, dragon. Your carcass will feed these hatchlings." he declared, motioning to the piles of eggs._

"_I am an innocent man, and I refuse to die in the place of another!" Keiji shouted, but in his mind he knew the truth. His strength was wavering; the Darkness Game was beginning to take its tole on him. Combined with his fatigue, he wouldn't be able to keep up if this dragged on much longer. And if Dolgrune was indeed going to be stepping his game up, then his chances of surviving and proving his innocence were slipping away._

"_If you are innocent, then blame the dragon demon; blame Amarai Reiki for bringing this curse upon you!"_

Looking up from his cards, Dolgrune took a second to motion to the sickening structure all around them, the crackling sound of bugs crawling through the white puss echoing through both his and Keiji's ears. While the sound was like a lullaby to the mutant insect master, he knew Keiji head was ringing with the sound, and that the sensation of being surrounded by a structure that most humans would deem "sickening" was beginning to tug on his nerves.

"Allow me to explain the incredible power of my field card." he said, holding one of his two cards in each hand. "First of all, it increases the attack and defense points of each of my insects by two hundred points." Four fairs of eyes shifted to the Insect Princess, who was glowing with a light pink aura as her power rose (3300/1600). "Next, it allows me to discard an insect monster from my hand to place any insect from my deck or graveyard into my hand, as well as to discard an insect to special summon any insect from my hand to my field. So, I'll discard the monster I drew just this turn. A monster which, when combined with The Hive, makes me unstoppable. I discard Immortal Cockroach (1000/1000)."

Placing the named card into his graveyard, Dolgrune reached over to his deck as a small vine extended out and placed a card into said hand. "Now, let me explain the reason why I said that my Immortal Cockroach makes me invincible." he continued before Keiji could get a thought in. "Whenever Immortal Cockroach goes to the graveyard, he returns to my hand." Placing a hand against his graveyard slot, Dolgrune waited patiently as a small vine slithered out of the slot and placed a card into his hand. Next he shoved it back into his cemetery and then set the card from his deck onto his duel plate.

Seconds after Dolgrune had placed the card onto the tangle of roots, he grinned beneath his surgeons mask as a sick monstrosity stepped onto the field. It was massive, at least as big as an elephant. It stood on eight spider legs and had a body not so dissimilar in shape to that of a spiders. However, the exoskeleton was red and black, while the back segment of its bodies armor opened to reveal a pair of wings beneath a protective cover. Finally, the feature separating it from any normal insect was the face. Rather than the multiple eyes of an arachnid or the massive, compound eyes of most other bugs, this ones face was relatively human in design, complete with a nose, mouth and human-esk eyes, their shape revealing it to be female, but her mouth was will filled with fangs, the skin yellow, and a pair of antennae sprouted from her scalp.

"This is my Insect Queen (2200+200/2400), who is powered up by The Hive and whose effect increases her power by two hundred per insect on the field. Then she gains another two hundred per insect because of my continuous Might of the Swarm, which will also increase the power of Insect Princess." he explained as both of his monsters power began to rise.

Eyes wide, Keiji began to realize exactly what all this meant. With The Hive in play and Immortal Cockroach in his hand, Dolgrune could summon any monster from his deck that he wanted, and could do so infinitely. Clenching his teeth and narrowing his eyes, he began to try and think up a plausible counter strategy, but was soon distracted yet again as he caught sight of Dolgrune's eyes, which still seemed empty. It was as if he had intellect and personality, but lacked any sense of humanity or soul.

"Now then, to show you how much of difference there is between you and I." Dolgrune chortled, holding up the card he had just retrieved from his cemetery. "I discard Immortal Cockroach six more times to place three insects into my hand and then to summon Deathscythe Mantis (2300+200/1600), Butterfly Reaper (2400+200/1400), and Horned Charger Beatle (2600+200/900) in attack mode."

All at once, three of the eggs on the ground by Dolgrune's feet began to expand until they were each larger than either player, at which point a tearing sound could be heard as claws, wings and horns began to pierce through the protective shells of their incubation. As one, they emerged from the confines of silk, now fully matured. First was another mantis with metallic scythes as its claws and with a jet black carapace. Second was an insect standing on its hind legs while using its forward legs as hands to hold up the vicious, double bladed scythe that would serve as its weapon of choice, and with a set of monarch butterfly wings. The final one was a large red beetle with a massive horn curved up from the front of its face, while two other horns lanced straight forward from what would be considered the forehead, each one appearing to be made of steel rather than bone.

"Now each of my monsters will gain one thousand attack points from my Might of the Swarm, and Insect Queens own effect will raise her attack points by another two thousand." Dolgrune continued, even though Keiji had already figured it out. Although he wasn't aware of the effects of the three new insect monsters, he was sure it wouldn't matter if they attacked him. Each one had an attack power well over three thousand, and he had only one monster in defense mode and one face down card. It would take a great deal of luck on his part to survive the coming assault.

Raising an elongated arm and pointing at Ranger of the North Star (300/2200), Dolgrune shifted his eyes to his Deathscythe Mantis (3500/1800). Without even speaking its name, he gave the only command that needed to be issued: "Attack his Ranger!" Releasing a shrill cry, much like the one that most of its brethren had when attacking throughout the duel, the black predator stalked across the field, arms raised.

"I activate my face down card, Weakening of the Attack! This card negates your attack and ends your battle phase" Keiji shouted as his quick-play magic card activated and a nearly invisible barrier formed between his monster and the attacking mantis. Ignoring this development, the insect slayer slashed down, his blade connecting with the shield, but failing to penetrate it, and so the mantis marched back to the rest of the force.

Sighing with relief that none of Dolgrune's monster had been able to negate his card, Keiji draw, giving him a hand of five. Although it was normally very rare to have so many cards in hand at the start of ones turn at such a stage in the game, Keiji's current hand consisted primarily of magic cards that would be wasted on his weak monster or unable to harm Dolgrune's monsters.

Glancing up, he checked the current strength of each of the five monsters facing him down, each one very much at home in the room of eggs, wax, and silk. As it stood, Deathscythe Mantis (3500) was the weakest of them, followed by Butterfly Reaper (3400), then Horn Charger Beetle (3800), Insect Princess (4100) fourth, and finally, Insect Queen (4400) as the strongest.

'_Dolgrune wasn't kidding when he said he'd be going all-out. Even my strongest monster's built-in potential taps out at four thousand, and my chances of being able to summon it are rather low.'_ Reaching up with his free right hand he pressed on the bridge of his nose between his eyes while blinking a few times, trying to clear his vision. _'Everything's starting to grow faint. I'm growing weak and can't last much longer.'_

"You may currently dominate the field, Dolgrune, but your attack power isn't everything. I set one card face down and summon Ranger of the Starlit Sky (1300/1900) in defense mode." he declared as another Ranger appeared, this one dressed in a silver tunic and wielding a curved blade running up each arm. "When this monster is summoned, I place one random card from my graveyard into my hand." Reaching down, Keiji accepted the card offered to him and added it to his hand. "Now I'll equip my Ranger of the Starlit Sky with Morning Star Rod, boosting his attack by three hundred. End turn."

Drawing a third card, Dolgrune wasted no time in playing it, an enlarged image of the magic card appearing, showing Keiji that it was a continuous card. The image on the card showed a set of scales, each of the dishes holding a single card standing straight up. The one on the left, however, was facing towards Keiji, while the card in the right-hand dish was turned away.

"This is Compensation Draw, and it allows me to discard cards from my hand to draw new cards from my deck." Dolgrune explained, and Keiji instantly realized the deadliness of this card in Dolgrune's hands.

"And because of your Immortal Cockroach, you can increase your hand size to any amount you wish." he concluded, and Dolgrune simply nodded, although Keiji was positive he was smirking underneath his mask. Holding up the named card, he inserted it into his graveyard, which then spat it right back out, and so he discard it again, repeating the process four times total before he returned the discarded card to his hand and then drew four cards, meaning he had six cards in his hand, plus Immortal Cockroach.

"I play a second Might of the Swarm, meaning each of my monsters will each gain an extra one thousand attack points!" Eyes wide, Keiji watched as each of the opposing monsters rose by incredible amounts, the weakest one now equal in power to the Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon. However, Dolgrune wasn't done there. Taking two more cards from his hand, he slipped them into his last two magic zones, filling his field completely.

"Now, Deathsycthe Mantis (4500), attack his Ranger of the Starlit Sky (1600/1900)!" Lifting his bladed arms above his head, the mantis struck, bringing the blades down, colliding with the defending man, who lifted the wooden staff in his hands, hooking it against the inner arm of the mantis, avoiding the flesh-renting blades, but it was obvious which monster had the advantage.

"I activate the effect of my Morning Star Rod, sacrificing it to negate the battle damage for the turn." Keiji called as the razor blades slashed the staff into three pieces, but provided the chance the Ranger needed to leap back unharmed.

"Interesting move." Dolgrune complimenting. "I was wondering why you equipped your defending monster. Very well, if you are protected this turn, then I shall end."

Drawing, Keiji noticed that he was shaking. Not only were his hands trembling, but his entire body. His eyes were desperate to close, blurring his vision. Blinking a few times, he tried to clear his sight, but to no avail. Breathing more deeply, he tried to calm his mind in an attempt to ease his shivering, barely stopping it. Blinking once more, he looked back at his cards, which were becoming just barely clear enough to tell which ones were which, thanks in part to the fact that he knew his cards so well. Focusing with all his might, he forced his hand to place the single card in his magic zone and passed his turn, unable to make any kind of retaliation.

"Growing weak?" Dolgrune asked, drawing a card. "Why don't you use your demon energy? Are you so desperate to convince me that you're human?"

"I..." Keiji seethed, breathing deeply, his head hanging. "I am not..." Taking another deep breath, he started to lift his head. "I am not a demon." he managed to gasp out.

XXXXXXXXX

Just outside of Keiji's apartment, standing in the poorly lit street, was a man in his mid-twenties, with hair so black that it threatened to consume the night sky. He was dressed simply enough: black pants, leather boots, and a leather jacket. The only part of his attire that seemed unusual was the fact that he was wearing sunglasses at 11:30 pm, in a street that had a single, weak lamp post at either end, some twenty feet to either side of the man.

"How strange," he muttered under his breath. "It would seem that he is human. Yet, at the same time, how can he be human? He's lasted longer in a Darkness Game than an average person, yet I sense no demon energy from him."

Rubbing his chin in thought, he continued to ponder the situation. He preferred not to kill humans, because his goal was solely the elimination of demons for the purification of the human race. Taking the life of a human generally defeated his purpose.

Reaching a decision, he delved into the back of his mind, connecting him to his servants conscience. _'Dolgrune, give him one more turn, and then finish him. It's possible that he's just above the limits of normal humans, but even if he is, he wont last much longer.'_

XXXXXXXXXX

"The time has come," the man behind the surgeons mask declared, glancing at his new card. "To summon my greatest monster."

Whether or not Keiji heard this declaration was unsure. He was currently leaning forward, his eyes closed and his breathing ragged. The only indication that he was still alive being the way his entire upper body would rise and fall periodically with his breathing.

"I sacrifice Horn Charger Beetle (4800) to my Deathscythe Mantis in order to add the sacrificed monsters attack points to my Deathscythe." As Dolgrune gave the command, the scarab was slashed open by the mantis that stood directly next to him, and was then promptly devoured by its killer, whose attack began to soar.

"Of course, the goal of that maneuver was simply to open up a monster zone." Dolgrune continued, laying his drawn card onto his plant Duel Disk. "I remove Killer Needle (1200/1000), Flying Kamakiri (1400/900), and Preying Mantis (1500/1200) from my graveyard, plus I sacrifice The Hive to summon Queen of the Hive (0+2200/0+2000) in attack mode!"

Lifting his head in surprise by the sacrifice of the field card, Keiji forced his head to lift, and was disappointed by what he saw. Not only was the field card seemingly still in effect, but he saw the forming of the new monster. Nearly every single egg had amassed to one point on the floor and were now pulsing as one. Deafening as the chirping and crawling of the insects within the catacombs of the walls were, the sound made by thousands of eggs splitting open simultaneously overshadowed the other noises completely.

Seconds later the eggs all erupted at once and Keiji could see that they had become a single egg somehow. What emerged was another female insect, this one appearing to be most like a bee in appearance. Like the Insect Queen, this new monster had a fairly human face, except the skin was black with short, black fuzz covering it, except for the two massive, smooth eyes at the end, set at an angle to allow it to see in front, above, and to the sides all at once without having to change its position in the slightest.

Like a bee, she had a yellow and black striped pattern on her bulbous abdomen, as well as a stinger sticking out of her backside. Unlike a bee, she had a pair of butterfly wings, and her six limbs were not short appendages sticking out of her chest, but were more like small trees that extended out of her sides, pointed straight up and then bending down.

"This is my ultimate monster." Dongrune continued to laugh as Keiji's face fell into a grimace. This monster required a hefty cost, yet it had zero attack points. That meant it had a few devastating effects. "As you no doubt have guessed, my Queen of the Hive has some powerful abilities, since I sacrificed my field card to summon her. Well, her fist ability is that while she is in play The Hive is considered to be active, meaning I retain all of its abilities."

Realizing that this made sense, since the field was still active all around them, Keiji continued to wait for further explanation.

"Now I will reveal the true powers of my Queen of the Hive!" Dolgrune called, his excitement growing. "For every insect monster I sacrifice to her, she will gain one thousand attack points. So, farewell Insect Queen and Butterfly Reaper." At the same moment the two named monsters exploded into dust that was absorbed into the massive bee, who had begun to suck violently on the air, pulling in the dust that remained of the two monsters, boosting her attack points to nearly double what they had been moments before. "There can be only one queen!"

"You may have powered up your Deathscythe and Queen, but in doing so you've decreased the number insects on your field, deducting eight hundred attack points from each of them." Keiji pointed out, having trouble forming the words, yet doing so just the same.

"Perhaps, but I still have three monsters with immense power at my disposal, and you have only two monsters left. Now, Deathscythe Mantis (9300) will attack your Ranger of the Starlit Sky!" Dolgrune commanded. Raising its claws above its head, the insect began to charge Keiji's field, intent on destroying the monster that had eluded it earlier. Slashing down, he

prepared to cut Keiji's monster to pieces just as his set card flipped up, a trap card.

"You..." he began, swallowing hard. "You've been taking me lightly, Dolgrune. Although it's true that your moves have been precise and overpowering, I have thus far managed to hold off your attacks, and this will be no different."

His head still hung, Keiji's words were weak, yet they still startled Dolgrune, who couldn't understand what the boy was talking about. _'How does he have the strength to do this anymore? He should have passed out at the very least just from the stress of The Hive on him combined with the draining effects of the Darkness Game!'_

"I activate..." Keiji struggled to say, but was cut off by a sharp pain in his arm. Tilting his head to the side slightly, he saw than the skin on his arm was actually beginning to rip from the pressure of the duel, drawing a thin string of crimson.

'_I WILL NOT DIE INNOCENT!'_ Keiji repeated his earlier declaration within his head upon seeing his blood. Filled with new resolve, he lifted his head to stare at Dolgrune, who stared back, pure shock covering whatever parts of his face the mask he wore didn't. Again, Keiji noticed the absence of light within Dolgrune's soul, but was drawn from that thought as a light filled a portion of his vision.

Looking down at his arm, Keiji saw that the blue-white light was beaming from the rupture in his skin, or, more appropriately, from the blood that had flowed from that wound. He then noticed light burning underneath his clothes at various points, realizing that other parts of his skin had opened all over his body. Staring in awe, Keiji felt as though time froze for him as he was consumed by the light.

XXXXXXXXX

'_What's this?'_ the man on the street asked, alarmed by the development. _'What is this power? It's not demon energy, but it's also not like anything I've ever felt from a human either. No matter what powers a human uses, the energy that flows from them is still the same. But this...this is...'_

So surprised was the man that he was having a great deal of trouble finding a way of describing what he felt.

"It feels...pure." he finally decided, speaking aloud unintentionally. "But that still doesn't tell me what it is. However, if this truly is coming from Keiji, then it proves two things: he isn't a demon, for no demon could have such a clean power; and also, Dolgrune doesn't stand a chance. Very well, he's disposable for a reason."

Turning on his heel, Juushin left his puppet to his fate. He had to look into a few things.

XXXXXXXXX

Stepping back, Dolgrune watched the flaring light with a mix of terror, confusion, and amazement. He had no idea what he was up against anymore. He was told his opponent would be a demon or a human, but this was beyond either of those. To make matters worse, he could feel his masters conscience breaking ties with him. That meant that his master no longer had faith in him and had discarded him. But...what did that mean for him?

"I see." Keiji's voice boomed from within the ethereal flames. "You aren't human," As the voice continued, the flames began to dim until Keiji's body could be made out, and then further until everything was as it had been less than a minute before, except for the fact that Keiji was once again standing tall and the wounds on his arms were gone, although the blood that had dripped along his skin remained, but was now dry and dark.

Meanwhile, a faint, thin aura could be made out around Keiji's body. "Nor are you a demon." he continued. "You're a puppet made my someone, but whoever they are, they're very good at covering their tracks."

Turning back to the duel, ignoring the trembling Dolgrune, Keiji continued where he had left off. Somehow, when the burst of power went off the duel itself had frozen. However, as the force began to wane, so did the ability of the monsters to not move, and soon the attack was once again falling towards Keiji's Ranger.

"My trap card is Attack Guidance Armor, which I will use to direct your attack at your Queen of the Hive (3400)!" Instantly the demonic armor appeared around the bee, causing the mantis to grind to a halt and then turn around, glaring at the Queen.

"Activate face down card," Dolgrune shouted. "Exoskeleton! This card activates whenever an insect monster on my field is attacked. I may control the attack target and reduce the damage by half." Again the mantis came to a stop and turned again, this time pointed at the Insect Princess, whose body was suddenly very reflective, coated in a thin later of some transparent material. Slashing down, the mantis cut the Princess in half and her remains fell in a pile on the white floor, staining it with her fluids. (DLP:500)

"I also activate my other trap card, Rage of the Swarm, dealing you one hundred points of damage times the level of all insect monsters in my graveyard when an insect monster is destroyed. I have thirty levels worth of monsters in my graveyard, meaning I'll drag you even lower than myself." Dolgrune explained as his other face down card activated and thousands of wasps began to emerge from both the trap card and from the catacombs in the walls.

The buzzing became almost too much for even Dolgrune himself to withstand as the plethora of wasps surrounded Keiji, but somehow burned into nothingness when they touched his aura. After a minute or two, the pests scattered, returning to their tunnels. However, the damage was done. (KLP:400)

"I also still have my Queen of the Hive (3200), and you're out of face down cards. Queen of the Hive, attack Ranger of the Starlit Sky." Opening her mouth wide, the massive bee released a wave of insects that devoured Keiji's monster until only fragments of bone remained.

Setting a card face down, Dolgrune nodded to Keiji, who drew a card. "It's over Dolgrune. You may still have the stronger monsters, but you no longer have a reason to face me. A puppet only has purpose so long as he is of use, and your time of use is ended."

Surprised that Keiji somehow knew his dilemma, Dolgrune shook his head snarled "Even if my master has abandoned me, I will be able to continue with the purpose I was created for, and that is the elimination of demons!"

"Like I said, you no longer have a purpose." Keiji said, holding up his drawn card. "You were created without any of the attributes that you would need to survive in the world. You have no soul, no heart, not even a brain. You've been programed using a form of magic to give you a form of intelligence so that you can duel effectively and adapt to such situations, you lack reasoning, and so you cannot even defeat me. You have no way of understanding what it is that drives me, so you cannot comprehend what I say."

Sliding his card into his magic zone, Keiji folded up the remaining cards in his hand. "Star Restoration allows me to shuffle all cards in my hand back into my deck and then draw five cards." he explained, shuffling his deck and then drawing a new hand of cards. Setting one of those cards into a magic zone, the holographic image of the card appeared. "One card face down. Turn end."

Shaking slightly, Dolgrune drew a card. For the first time, Keiji had a feeling of superiority, despite the situation. _'Nonsense! He only has four hundred Life Points left; he'll lose right now thanks to Queen of the Hive's effects.'_

"I activate the final ability of my Queen of the Hive!" he shouted as his Deathscythe Mantis began to suddenly convulse. Upon further inspection, it could be seen that the Queen of the Hive had stabbed it in the side with her stinger. As she withdrew, a white fluid began to pour out of the hole she left, but the mantis continued to thrash about, growing more and more violent. "In exchange for his life, Deathscythe Mantis has been turned into a berserker who will bypass your monsters and deal you eight hundred points of damage."

As the explanation ended, the mantis flew into a rage, storming across the field. When it was only a few feet away from crashing into Keiji's North Star Ranger it leapt into the air, where its body caught fire (an apparent side effect of the venom it had been injected with) and it began it's decent towards Keiji, dealing enough damage to finish Keiji twice.

"North Star Ranger!" Keiji shouted, and to Dolgrune's surprise the Ranger sprung backwards, hovering in the air between Keiji and the mantis.

"What do you think you're doing?" Dolgrune shouted. "This is a direct damage effect, not battle."

"I understand that." Keiji responded. "However, North Star Ranger allows me to sacrifice him to negate all Life Point damage I would take this turn." he explained as his Ranger held up his shield just as the flaming insect collided with him, resulting in a standstill for a few seconds before they both exploded in a shower of light.

"Fine, then I'll discard my Immortal Cockroach three times to special summon three Insect Knights (1900/1500) from my deck to the field, and then I'll sacrifice them to my Queen of the Hive to gain eight hundred Life Points each." Dolgrune shouted, sounding erratic as three identical insectoid warriors standing on their hind legs and wielding shields and swords in their hands appeared. Seconds later they were sucked into the gaping mouth of the Queen while Dolgrune's Life Points ticked up. (DLP:2900)

"Finally, I summon my Immortal Cockroach and sacrifice it to my Queen of the Hive to further increase her attack points." Unable to do anything more, Dolgrune ended his turn as his Queen devoured the small insect creature and grew stronger.

"I summon Ranger of the Moon (1400/1000)!" Keijji called, slapping his drawn monster onto his Duel Disk. From the air descended the off-white robed warrior, sword at the ready. "Next, I will equip him with his preferred weapon, Tidal Flamberge, boosting his attack points by 800!"

Instantly the short sword of the warrior began to shift, as if the blade had suddenly been heated to high temperatures, softening it. After a few more seconds of warping, the blade re-solidified, only its edges had been modified with a series of small curves, looking like waves of the sea.

"Also, when Ranger of the Moon (2200/1000) is equipped with Tidal Flamberge he may attack twice each turn."

"It doesn't matter." Dolgrune shouted. "My Queen of the Hive (3600/3200) still has more attack points."

"Not after I activate this next equipment magic card," Keiji said, holding up the center card of the ones he still held. "Empyrean Sword boosts my monsters attack by one thousand!

In the other hand of the Ranger appeared a sword with a blade shimmering like silver and a hilt of gold. With runes etched into the flat of the blade and twisting designs in the handle, it truly was a beautiful weapon to behold.

"It's still not enough!" Dolgrune shouted.

"His attack power is plenty. However, now it's time I dealt with your monsters power." Keiji said, grabbing another card from his hand and shoving it into his graveyard. "Empyrean Sword is one of the most deadly equipment cards in the game. Not only does it give my monster an incredible increase of attack points, but it also allows me to once per turn discard a monster from my hand and then I must choose. I can deal the discarded monsters attack points as damage to one of your monsters, or half of its attack points as damage to each of your monsters. I choose to deal the full power of my discarded monster, Ranger of the Falling Stars (1700/1400), to your Queen of the Hive!"

Raising the sword above his head, Ranger of the Moon waited a second as a bolt of light fired from Keiji's graveyard into the sword. Swinging the claymore down, the same light was fired from the blade, striking the Queen in the area that, if she were human, would have been her heart. Howling in pain, the Queen fell forward, nearly half of it's power drained.

"What are you?" Dolgrune asked, his voice trembling slightly.

"I am innocent." Keiji declared. "Ranger of the Moon (3200), attack Queen of the Hive (1900)!" Bolting across the field, each sword held out to the side, Ranger of the Moon quickly closed the gap between himself and the Queen, slashing down with the sparkling sword first, hitting the ground but releasing a blast of light that consumed and burned her body. Then, rising from his knee he leapt at Dolgrune and slashed straight down with his wavy sword, aim for Dolgrune.

However, seconds before the attack could hit, Dolgrune began to glow for a second, and when the light faded, a simple flower was all that remained, which the Ranger cleaved in half. (DLP:0)

Sighing, Keiji felt the aura of light vanish from around him, just as the walls of darkness did, returning him to his apartment. Happy just be back home and alive, Keiji smiled slightly before falling forward, sleep overcoming him even before he touched the carpet.

_To Be Continued..._

There you have it. As always, any cards that aren't real are made by myself or Seeker. Speaking of Seeker, he's got the next chapter, that he does. See ya.

_Next time from Seeker of the Soul: Keiji's sudden burst of power has intrigued Juushin, and the demon slayer seeks to learn more about this pure power. So while his mission to capture Amarai remains, Juushin's eyes are now personally set on Keiji. And that is never a good thing…_

_See it all on, Unwanted Attention!_


	12. Unwanted Attention

Author's Note: I've been super busy with stuff recently, so I hope my distraction doesn't bring a decline in my work. Hopefully the readers will enjoy this chapter.

**Chapter Twelve: Unwanted Attention**

_'Pure…'_ That one thought had been on Juushin's mind since the previous night, when he had felt that surging power, the power that had made their mistaken target capable of defeating Dolgrune, one of his lower level Seed Puppets.

"To defeat Dolgrune requires a level of skill and power higher than I had estimated based on that bounty hunter's skills. However, his talents in that area are negligible, and that is unimportant now that I know he is no demon. However that power…" He pursed his lips, not quite sure what to make of it.

Never before in his long life had he felt any spiritual power that pure, or particularly like that. He had witnessed the unique spirit power of many different humans and beings of mystical persuasion, but this was different. "Pure, and beyond the realm of normal human power in some way. Not stronger just…different."

Mentally he assessed the level of power he had felt when the boy's energy had reached its peak. "Strong, above Dolgrune's of course, and worth noticing. However, his unique spiritual power is still so underdeveloped that it's a wonder he was able to manifest it at all. Even someone of middling spiritual power with knowledge of how to use it could defeat that child in battle."

No, defeating this strange boy was not something that would be a challenge if he were to send one of his minions for direct combat. He himself wouldn't even have to lift a finger to defeat the boy at his current level of power. "There was potential there, room for vast improvement in power. With cultivation I'm certain he could be very powerful. But what was that spiritual energy I sensed?"

He knew exactly who to consult on the nature of that energy. He would get his answers, and he would still capture the demon Amarai. "Capturing that dragon demon, although not killing him instantly is vexing, is important to the cause. However, this Keiji Saigo personally intrigues me. I'll be watching you Keiji, and I will have answers."

Determined to find the truth he set out to locate the one person he knew who could get him the information he needed. Doing so would require that he leave the city for a short time. "Cressa."

The female Seed Puppet appeared by his immediately, bowing to him. He didn't look back at her or acknowledge her other than to continue speaking. She was one of his four strongest Seed Puppets, the elite of his cadre of personal soldiers. "Inform your subordinates to continue with their assigned missions. I have to leave the city for a time."

She inclined her head, bowing even deeper as he started to walk away. "It will be as you say Master. We will capture the demon Amarai, purge this city of the few demons left hiding in it, and continue our other duties."

"Depart Cressa. There is no time for me to spare on pleasantries. Once you've spoken to the others, I want you to observe the activities of the boy that defeated Dolgrune. I want him watched at all times." The moment he was done speaking he vanished from her sight, but not from her senses. She could feel his masked spiritual presence heading through the city at great speed, moving away from her.

"It will be as you say. Always as you say."

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Looking out from the gap between customers Ken Mifune was able to see the man and the woman standing on the other side of the street, talking to each other. Normally he wouldn't have even noticed, but people just naturally slid around them, nobody seemed to pay them any head and the flow of human traffic just moved around them.

_'Well well well…the ghost zone technique is it? Anyone without a certain level of spiritual awareness simply avoids you and the area around you without ever noticing it. And I recognize that technique.. That's Cressa and one of Kyouki's other Seed Puppets.'_ His train of thought was suddenly derailed when the world seemed to fade to black and white.

Ken was far from surprised when his customers and the rest of the crowd outside his booth seemed to be completely still in his zone. This was what it was like to be engulfed in Cressa's technique, the Ghost Zone Technique. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you're watching me."

The female Seed Puppet looked straight at him, her vibrant green eyes seeming to drill into his skull. Instead of the normal jeans and long sleeved shirts that the Seed Puppets wore to appear more normal Cressa was wearing her uniform, which she appeared in whenever she couldn't be seen. Thanks to her special technique she could go anywhere without being noticed, so she had no need of wearing normal clothing.

Her lithe and muscular body was covered snugly by a pair of long silken black pants, and a similar top that was covered by a red vest with what appeared to be a black rose blossom on the left breast. Kyouki's symbol. "Ken. You let your spiritual power ooze out like an untrained child and it focuses where you focus. Any person with even an inkling of spiritual awareness would know."

The gray haired man snorted, leaning up against the counter of his noodle cart to look her directly in the eye. "Don't say things like that when I've known you for thirty years Cressa, ever since Kyouki first created you. Only you can always tell where someone is focusing with that special ability of yours."

She inclined her head, giving him the respect he deserved by acknowledging it. "Master Juushin always has spoken highly of you Ken, although I never saw reason to agree. Your spiritual strength is mediocre at best, and your abilities also mediocre. I've also never witnessed any special talents of yours, so his confidence seemed based on personal opinion. He…likes the purity of your spirit."

Ken sighed, knowing exactly what she meant. He had met Kyouki, or as he was now called Juushin, forty three years previous when he had entered the organization at a fresh faced age of eighteen. Kyouki had acted as his guide and was his superior, teaching him how to fight and control his spiritual power. But what he would always remember was when he met Kyouki the first time.

He had walked through the grand halls, trying to ignore the condescending looks of higher level members. His minimal spiritual awareness of the time had been overwhelmed by the numerous and large presences all around him.

Then, as he had walked around a corner, he had felt every other presence shoved out of his mind and found himself falling to his knees, barely able to breathe. The power beating down on him had been huge and all consuming, and had lasted for what seemed eternity. But in reality mere moments passed before the power ebbed away, letting Ken come back to his senses.

He had looked up to find Kyouki standing a few feet away, looking down at him with icy blue eyes. He remembered being in awe that this man, whose relaxed spiritual presence could drop him to his knees, could so precisely control that massive power. There he had been, resplendent in a solid white uniform with a black rose blossom on the left breast, watching him. Then he had spoken. _"In this place, power is important. When your awareness adjusts you'll be able to wander these halls without being overwhelmed. When you can stand near my presence without hesitation, you will become my direct subordinate."_

Ken had been confused and asked the first thing that he could think of, shocked as he was that this man was even deigning to speak to him. _"Your subordinate sir? But…why? My power is weak, and they say that even with training it will never be extraordinary."_

Kyouki had looked at him very carefully, and then answered without hesitation. _"Your spirit is untainted, it feels pure. Maintain that purity at all times, and I would be honored to have you stand at my side."_

Then he had walked away as if he had explained everything, leaving Ken to ponder what he had just been told. "Why are you watching us?"

Ken's mind was jerked back to the present and the female Seed Puppet who was addressing him. He silently cursed his oncoming age for bringing up such memories, and refocused. "I suppose even now I'm curious what Kyouki is up to with you bunch wandering around. After all, I felt him leave the city a while back."

Cressa turned slightly, looking at him out of the corner of her eye. "Master Juushin's activities are no longer of your concern. You don't have his attention anymore; you are gone from his world for all time now. Never again will you take Master Juushin's attention away."

Ken gritted his teeth in annoyance, hearing the edge to her voice and the hinted threat. This was not the first time this particular Seed Puppet had confronted him like this. It was one of many such incidents during the days he had been Kyouki's direct subordinate. "Of all his Seed Puppets, you're the most devoted Cressa. How wonderful that he can show you attention again that you deserve. Except, you seem bothered, and the only thing that bothers you is when his attention is focused on someone, leaving you out."

He didn't even blink when she held up one of her extra long arms, her sleeves falling away to reveal her dainty hands with carefully manicured rosy nails. And the nail on her pointer finger was lengthening. "Silence yourself old man! Master Juushin will always recognize my existence, even if he is currently preoccupied with that brat!"

Ignoring the finger pointed at him, which could be shot off like a dart at her will, Ken stepped back from the counter and turned his back on her. "I'm sure that's the case. I won't take your time or attention any further. Go about your business, don't fail or I'm sure Kyouki will recognize your existence in a negative manner, and I know you don't want that."

He wasn't surprised when the world returned to full color, and when he looked back over his shoulder the female Seed Puppet was gone. He shook his head, unsatisfied with what he had learned. "So you've turned your attention to that boy Dolgrune went after? Keiji Saigo was it? Your attention is bound to be harmful to the boy's health and…I won't let you hurt any human."

His mind made up Ken turned back to his customers, who had never noticed the exchange thanks to Cressa's talent. "I'm sorry folks, but I've got to leave to take care of some personal business. I'm going to be closing down shortly."

Looking out at the city skyline he could only frown, thinking about what Kyouki's attention could do to a person. About what it had done to him. _'Keiji Saigo, I won't let him make you into anyone like me. I refuse to allow that to happen!'_

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Keiji Saigo pushed his face up off the carpet, groaning at the slow pace his body was moving. He felt as if he had slept for a week, and his body was completely sluggish and useless. _'After last night, it's hardly surprising that I'm exhausted.'_

He had no explanation for what had happened in his duel with that powerful insect duelist Dolgrune. He had unleashed some sort of power and successfully defeated Dolgrune, but it had taxed him of everything he had. "Sleeping on the floor is…uncomfortable."

"Yes, I'm sure it is." Keiji tried to spin around to face the source of the voice, but his body responded very slowly. Instead of whirling about his spine just sort of creaked and he slowly turned around.

There, leaning against the wall next to his television set was an elderly man with gray hair and calm brown eyes. Keiji didn't really get the same feeling from this man that he had from his previous encounters, but he still didn't trust it. "Before you say anything, I'm not a demon."

"Congratulations. At least I now know you're intelligent enough to know if you're a demon or not. Of course a child could tell that on his or her own. Keiji Saigo, right?" Keiji nodded slowly, not sure what to make of it.

This man's attitude was completely different from everyone else who had come after him recently, appearing randomly like this guy had. Not only did he not seem to care of Keiji was a demon or not, but he also actually called him Keiji, instead of calling him Amarai. "Yes, I'm Keiji Saigo. And you are?"

"Ken Mifune. Impressive work with Dolgrune the other night by the way. Few humans could have lasted well enough in a Darkness Game to even scratch Dolgrune, let alone defeat him." Keiji felt his blood run cold as he remembered what he had learned. Dolgrune was just some kind of puppet, used by someone who masked their presence. This man could be the hidden master.

"Did you send Dolgrune?" To Keiji's relief the old man shook his head, letting Keiji relax slightly. If this man wasn't associated with Dolgrune, then he was in a better position. But if he still ended up in a Darkness Game…he wouldn't stand a chance.

"I do however know who did send Dolgrune. And I'm here to warn you that something about you, whatever it is that let you last in the Darkness Game and beat Dolgrune, has brought that person's attention upon you. And his personal attention is something that you must avoid at all times. If you ever meet him, I want you to promise me that you will say no to whatever he requests of you." Keiji stared at the old man, not quite sure what to make of this declaration.

"Who is this man? More importantly, why is it that you want me to make this promise?" Keiji found himself not automatically rejecting the man's words as a ruse, as something in the man's eyes told him that he was sincere. Unlike Dolgrune this man was full of spirit, and seemed to have pure intentions.

"He is…different. I can't give you a name, I'm sorry but…his name is sealed against those who do not know him. By the same measure I can't tell you what he looks like, or anything else about him other than that he is now personally interested in you. And as for the reason for the promise…" Ken's eyes got a far away look in them for a moment, as if he was remembering something from long ago.

His eyes cleared, and he continued where he had left off. "The reason for the promise is that I don't want you to become mixed in anything. I don't want you to come under his influence like so many before have. He is a dangerous man, more dangerous than anything you can imagine."

"After these past three battles I've had, I'm certain I can handle it. Dolgrune was dangerous, but I managed. I am honored that you are worrying about me, even though you don't know me, but I'm not afraid. If I must, I'll deal with Dolgrune's master when the time comes." He tried to smile to reassure the old man, but instantly he found himself being forced onto his hands and knees, his vision fuzzing.

Keiji craned his neck, taking a look up at Ken. The old man was glaring down at him, now having pushed away from the wall. And to Keiji's eyes the old man was burning with an inner light, a light that was producing the force that was driving him into the ground. "You will promise. The man I speak of is too dangerous for you to brush aside like that. Dolgrune is nothing but a seedling amongst other seeds, while his master is a giant red wood. If my power forces you to your knees, his would crush you into a red stain on your carpet."

The look in Ken's eyes, and the way he spoke, it all pointed towards one conclusion. It was true. Whoever was now personally interested in him, it was someone who could easily kill him without a thought. "I…won't accept his requests. But tell me, why is he interested in me?"

As the pressure on Keiji's back relaxed, the look on Ken's face softened somewhat. He turned away, no longer wanting to look at the teenager. "Now that I've met you, if I had to say it was anything, I'd say it was because…you are pure. Goodbye Keiji Saigo, this is our only meeting."

Keiji was honestly expecting the old man to vanish in a flash of light, but instead he simply walked to the door, opened it, and then left. "My life has certainly become complicated."

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In the depths of a dark forest many miles outside of Kyoto Juushin found himself confronted by the two guardians of the large Shinto Shrine that he was standing outside of. Each one was a seven foot tall muscular man with the head of a lion. "Stand aside, I've already passed this asinine test and I don't have time for you."

There was a pause, and then the guardians stepped aside. Without another word Juushin brushed past them and swept through the door to the shrine. He paid no heed to his surroundings, as he knew the way by heart.

Finally after about a minute of walking through the maze-like shrine he found himself standing directly in front of what appeared to be a young boy of about eight years of age, dressed in the clothes of a Shinto Priest. "Lord Kurogashi, you've come to visit me again?"

Juushin stopped himself from frowning in annoyance. He knew protocol in this place. "You are perhaps the only person outside of the upper echelons of my order who I will allow to address me by anything other than my title. I hope you understand that."

The boy smiled enigmatically, his bright blue eyes shining as he looked up at Juushin. "Of course Lord Kurogashi, I am honored to have the right to address you as such. Now, what question have you come to ask me?"

"I desire to know the nature of the power of the boy called Keiji Saigo. Recently I discovered his pure power, and I wish to know the truth of that pure power." The boy scrutinized him, looking him up and down as if looking for something in particular. Finally the boy bobbed his head in satisfaction.

"Of course. It will require meditation for me to derive the answer from the myriad of lies, but it can be done. Of course, you also know what is required of you for this answer. I must advise against having this question answered, as this would be the third time, and it is unsafe to pay my price multiple times." Juushin's face was set in a grim line, just as usual.

"I am willing to pay the cost of a fragment of my life to have my question answered, just as before. I still have four questions remaining after this, so I don't worry. This is simply the fastest route to the answer I need." What he didn't mention, nor would he ever, was that a fragment of his life was meaningless. Unlike a normal person, he could give away those 'fragments' infinitely and be untouched.

"Very well then, let it begin."

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The two guardians of the shrine stood up from their spot, moving to guard the entrance as someone approached. It was none other than Cressa, who stalked towards the building, her green eyes ablaze. "Stand aside! I would speak with my master who resides within the walls of this building!"

The first lion-headed guardian shook his shaggy head, placing a hand out to stop her and an invisible force pushed her to a halt. "None can pass save those who have passed a test to prove their worthiness. Defeat the two of us in a contest of skill and you may enter."

Cressa sneered beneath her surgeon's mask and raised her right arm, vines shooting out of her arm to form into a duel disk. There was already a deck in place, just as always. "I'll obliterate you two to get to my master. None keep me from his side." (CLP: 4000)

The first guardian raised its left arm and a simple duel disk appear on it, a deck in it just like had been the case for Cressa. "Your terms are accepted. It will be a battle of this game." (G1LP: 4000)

The second guardian also had a duel disk form, and it drew a five card hand while the first drew six, and Cressa drew five. "You shall not pass." (G2LP: 4000)

Her first opponent placed a card into its duel disk, and the area around them shifted, becoming what looked like ancient ruins. "Activate field magic card, Ancient City. Now, activate continuous magic card, Ancient Key. This special summons two Ancient Man Tokens(400/400) to my field."

Two large stone humanoid creatures appeared in front of the lion-headed guardian, standing guard before him. "One card face down. Turn end."

Both tokens glowed, and the guardian's life points began to descend. "During a turn in which a Ancient Man token does not attack, I receive five hundred damage." (GLP: 3000)

Seconds later the second of the two guardians drew to start its turn. It placed a card onto its duel disk, and a demonic looking soldier emerged. "Death Kaiser(1800/1600) in attack mode. Activate Tribute Doll, sacrificing Death Kaiser for a level seven monster from hand."

The demon blew apart, and then a green circular shape with long green arms formed in its place. "Kazejin(2400/2200) is summoned. Death Kaiser, when tributed to an effect, allows its controller to draw two cards."

The guardian drew twice, renewing its hand from the cards wasted in summoning Kazejin. "Activate Lightning Summon. This card lets me normal summon without counting it as a normal summon for the turn. I summon Kaiser Seahorse(1700/1650)."

The blue and purple armored water monster raised its trident, glaring across the field at the Seed Puppet. "One card face down. End turn."

Cressa snatched a card off the top of her deck, her green eyes still burning up with her unbridled rage. The mere force of her draw dug at the ground around them, causing the guardians to be forced backwards. "I will not tolerate anyone standing between me and my master! Magical Well allows me to place a magic card from my deck to my hand, but during this turn it cannot be activated or set."

A card slid out of the middle of her deck and she quickly placed it amongst the other cards in her hand. Then she selected an entirely different card and slid it into her duel disk. "I set a card and end my turn. Let's hurry this along."

Her first guardian opponent drew, then without a word his two Ancient Man tokens shifted into defense mode. "Activate Ancient Book. This continuous magic card first lets me exchange a card from my hand with the top card of my deck."

He exchanged cards, and then continued. "During each standby phase I must discard a card from my hand for upkeep of Ancient Book or it is destroyed. Next, I activate Ancient Man Summon, summoning Ancient Giant Man(2200/1100) to the field."

A larger version of the two tokens appeared and pounded its fists together in preparation for an attack. "Ancient Giant Man will attack you directly." It began to charge towards her, only to be rebuffed by some invisible force."

"Continuous trap card activates. Borderline Battle prevents me from being attack at all so long as there are no monsters in my cemetery." If the guardian had a normal mouth, it probably would have frowned; instead it merely folded its hand up and nodded over at its partner. (GLP: 1700)

The other guardian drew. "He failed to mention Ancient Giant Man's draw back, that when it fails to attack it deals him three hundred damage. And now, for myself, I sacrifice Kaiser Seahorse, counting as two tributes, to summon Sanga of the Thunder(2600/2200)."

A brown monster that looked like it was the top half of something with big arms and some kind of spindly object on its back now stood near the other green body part. "Activate Set Completion, allowing me to summon the last third of this set, Suijin(2500/2200)."

A blue lower half appeared, giving the guardian the complete set. "I sacrifice all three to special summon Gate Guardian(3750/3400) to the field." The three pieces connected, forming into the huge and brutal monster known as Gate Guardian, one of the hardest to summon monsters in the entire game.

"Since I cannot attack you, my turn is ended." The instant he was done Cressa was already drawing, still giving off the same amount of force as before. She looked down at the card, then slid it amongst her other cards.

"Activate continuous magic card! Chaos Distill!" The field shook as a huge red Hershey kiss shaped kettle appeared behind Cressa, little mechanical arms sticking out of it. It steamed as complex actions went on inside of it.

"As long as this magic card is active all cards that would go to my cemetery are instead removed from the game. Now, I activate Copper Scales! Since Chaos Distill is on the field I can special summon Alchemic Beast-Copper Ouroboros(500/1500) to the field!" The kettle shook, and a red scaled serpent took shape on Cressa's field.

"This monster possesses the ability to attack the opposing player directly. However, I activate Alchemic Equation-Fire. I can sacrifice an alchemy monster to destroy a monster on the field and deal its attack as damage to each player. I take no damage if Chaos Distill is in play. So, Gate Guardian, shatter!" The serpent flew towards the guardian and when they collided both exploded, and fire rained down upon all three duelists.

The first guardian's field faded away as his life points reduced to nothing, leaving his partner on his own. "You have one desperate turn left guardian. I'm done for the moment." (G1LP: 0, G2LP: 250)

The second of the two guardians drew and held out the drawn card. "Dark Element allows me to pay half my life points if Gate Guardian is in the cemetery to special summon Dark Guardian(3800/3400) to the field." (G2LP: 125)

It looked over the field, and then pointed to its set card. As it flipped up the huge form of Gate Guardian returned. "Call of the Haunted allows me to revive Gate Guardian. However, since you still have Borderline Battle and zero monsters in the cemetery I cannot attack and must end my turn."

Cressa drew and looked over at the guardian coldly and then held up one of the cards from her hand over her head. "You foolishly assumed that power was the only way to go. Activate magic card, Silver Key! Since Chaos Distill is in play I can now special summon Alchemic Beast-Silver Moonface(500/1500) to the field!"

The monster that formed in front of her looked like a lump of silver in the form of a meteor. Or at least it would if a meteor had legs and tiny little arms, as well as big bulging eyes. "Weakling, get out of the way and allow me to my master! Silver Moonface can attack directly, so this is the end! Attack!"

Her alchemic monster's body warped, and a barb of silver matter shot out of it, going right between the two guardian monsters and striking the actual guardian in the chest. Seconds later all cards on the field faded away. "You have proven yourself worthy. You may enter." (G2LP: 0)

The female Seed Puppet shoved past the two monsters, moving at a swift pace through the building. She knew instinctively where her master was, she could feel him through their connection. And in less than a minute she was entering the room where he stood right in front of the strange boy he had come to see. "Master Juushin, I bring news!"

Juushin turned to face her as she dropped into a bow, one hand pressed against her heart in reverence. "Oh? Of Keiji Saigo?"

Cressa winced on the inside, her fury bubbling up again at her master's immediate thoughts about that boy. Yes, she knew that would have to be dealt with. She couldn't allow anyone or anything to get between her master's acknowledgments of her existence. "Ken Mifune has spoken to the boy and informed the boy of your intentions. He has betrayed us."

Juushin was silent for several seconds, his face completely still as he absorbed her words. Finally he looked back at the boy who had his eyes closed. "I'll return as soon as I have dealt with this matter. Then I'll be perfectly willing to wait by your side for the four necessary days."

The boy didn't respond, but Juushin had his answer. Juushin walked forwards, casually placing his hand on the female Seed Puppet's shoulder in a gesture to tell her to rise. Inwardly she thrilled to his touch. "Come Cressa. We'll deal with the traitor. This is a day I never wished to come, but I knew that it would eventually come. That one day he would betray my trust and I would be forced to act."

Cressa followed closely at his side, and eagerly asked a question that had been at the tip of her tongue. "Will you kill the traitor master Juushin?"

"He will die at my hands. Regrettable, but necessary." They continued their walk, but now it was different. At her master's side and with these words Cressa's mood lightened infinitely.

"It will be as you say master. It is always as you say." Soon there would be one less obstacle between her being the greatest focus of her master's attention and his acknowledgment. Perhaps if the Keiji boy were removed, then she would able to gain his full acknowledgment, and perhaps her ultimate desire.

Yes, for her ultimate desire she would do anything. She would fight, kill, and she would die for that one thing.

Her master's affection.

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Author's Note: Scwhaaa…nifty eh? I always wanted to use an Alchemy Deck, and Cressa was a perfect choice. Short duel yes, but it got its point across I think.

_My my, it's getting quite complex here, isn't it? Jeeze, and here is little old me, just playing with my dragon demon. Oh well, can't be helped. Amarai is still dueling without his demon energy against Amur, and to win he's going to have to figure out a way to bring out his power._

_Next episode- Scale of Crios_


End file.
